Mysteriously Bright and Dark
by SpycyAlmond
Summary: "All had changed that one evening, the day after will go down into history. Heroism and responsibility will play a huge role in this event, which leaves you with a lingering question: do you have them?" Ambition and defeat brings them into a parallel realm where a fateful adventure is clouded by a fog. At the other side awaits either a bright and glorious sun, or a dark dead-end...
1. Mist

1-Mist

_The creatures of the undead were closing in. A Wandering Specter, a Wailing Wraith, and a Living Scarecrow._

The Wandering Specter carried a type of lantern, and mist was pouring out of it. Rachel remembered Dworgyn mentioning the ghost with lanterns once in a lesson. Those type of ghost were supposed to be dangerous. Well ghost are supposed to be dangerous, but these in specific are more dangerous. Why? It has mainly to do with the lanterns they carry. What's inside. What was in the mist. He never said what the mist was exactly, all she knew was that it was dangerous.

Was anyone else aware of it? Well Wolf also took a class in Death, maybe he knows too. Maybe-because the topic that day suddenly switched to that. The lesson was originally about the history of the undead, that somehow changed to the Sunken City, then Dworgyn started talking about the ghost with mist-filled lanterns. And how the Sunken City had to stay hidden. It was just too dangerous for anyone to venture in because of those ghost, though many wizards were seen going in and coming out. She herself had ventured in there a while back. Nothing had happened to her afterwards, pretty much the same case with most wizards. Anyone that came out were seen in one peace, so it can't be that bad. Then again, these ghost must be rare to see if this was her first time seeing one.

Mason placed a Fire Trap on the Wailing Wraith, and Bailey casted a Fire Blade on him. And as he was about to cast his spell, the Wailing Wraith screeched a loud hectic shriek. Their ears rung-Mason and Bailey winced as they hunched over and covered their ears. It began to prepare an attack, as it was about to strike Amber casted a spell to stun the ghost, and it froze in it's attacking position. She turned in time to meet with the Living Scarecrow, and was getting ready to summon an Ice Serpent. Though a Thunder Shark jumped up from underneath and ate the scarecrow in whole. She stared absently at the spot where the creature used to be before a pair of black boots moved to that spot, she hadn't even registered them at that moment. Her eyes ascended slowly to the top of the person, to the face. It was Wolf.

"Thank you." she said, before casting the Ice Serpent at the Wailing Wraith.

Rachel and Erica dealt with the Wandering Spector-that carried the misty lantern. It was backing up, swaying it's lantern causing the mist to spread. Rachel stayed away from it, casting a Storm Blade on Erica, who was unaware of the danger of the mist and had called up a Kraken. The Kraken took it's huge thunder bolt, and threw it down at the Wandering Spector. It moaned as it was starting to fade away, although it lifted up it's lantern. Rachel grabbed Erica, pulling her away from the ghost to the rest of the group. The ghost was slowly fading away- and hadn't done anything with the lantern, Rachel was somewhat relieved. She got Erica and herself to the others safely.

"Let's hurry and get out of here." she told everyone. They all nodded, yet she felt an uncomfortable chill. Maybe she was cold, or leftover from worry about the Wandering Spector. She looked back to see if it diminished yet. It was gone, and there was nothing to worry about now.

As she raised her wand to flash them out, something not too big had hit her in the back of the head. She dropped her staff from the impact, her hat slid in her face too. She mumbled an "Ow." and rubbed the back of her head. Afterwards she straightened her hat.

"Are you okay?" Wolf asked, concerned. As Rachel was about to answer, Bailey suddenly gave a cry of surprise, Amber made a sound in her throat as if she couldn't get enough air.

Mason swung his hands wildly. "Yo, there's smoke all over the place! I think it's coming from that thing!" he pointed to something behind Rachel. She turned, and found the lantern right there at her feet. She gasped, and the mist quickly covered the ground, it slightly grew thick.

She noticed her wand was in neither hand. She moaned. "My wand is somewhere in the fog!" she bent down and began feeling around for it.

She suddenly felt some tingling in her throat , and her lungs felt weird. She wasn't sure why though it had pointed out that this was no ordinary mist. It changed colors too-to a dark purple color. Was this poison? Bailey started to feel light headed. Mason was yelling, insisting he teleported them out, and Amber doubted she could freeze the fog.

Wolf grabbed Erica, and she covered her mouth. "Rachel, what's going on?" Bailey had fainted and Amber caught her.

"Rachel!" she heard Mason snap. Rachel felt her energy drain dramatically, they all began to feel weaker and weaker by the minute. She searched hurriedly, she was feeling cold and was beginning to feel sick. Finally, when she found it, she grabbed it and hadn't wasted another moment getting up and teleporting them out.

They were outside the Sunken City in Nightside now. Immediately they collapsed, regaining all their strength, energy, and some air. Once they were able to they got back on their feet. So far everything looked okay.

Although Rachel's throat was still acting up, and it hurt to breath. Though she didn't complain or mind it too much. It would probably all go away later on. Her main concern was on the others. Was anyone infected by the mist?

Luckily no one looked or seemed sickly. Everything is okay.

"Tell me _why_ we were just in there?" Mason asked. He sounded exhausted, perhaps a bit exasperated.

"I told you I needed some things in there." Amber said. "I needed specific ingredients from there for a potion."

"And we all had to go?"

She shrugged. "You all wanted to come."

Finally he just let out a "Hmph." and went to lean against the wall of the Death School.

Rachel's face had started to ache. "Let's go. I don't feel too good at all."

Wolf had his hands resting on his Erica's shoulders. And he asked, "What doesn't feel good?"

"I can heal her!" Bailey says as she takes out her wand, ready to use a healing fairy.

"Wait, wait. Let me see what's troubling her." Rachel could guess that Amber was trying to read her aura. She was walking up to her, extending her arms forward. "Lend me your hands." and Rachel did so. Once they grasped each other's hands, Amber closed her eyes, and began chanting a prayer in her mind.

It stayed quiet like that for a while. Nothing seemed wrong so far. Bailey shivered. "Why does it suddenly feel so cold? Something strange is in the air…I don't like it."

"I feel it too." Wolf said. "It is a dark presence. We should leave." The sky darkened, it turned almost black. Grey clouds formed, the area became heavily foggy, and it started to drizzle.

Okay... So it's probably just a storm coming. A large roar of thunder, and a brilliant white light of lightning flashed across the sky. The rain picked up, now down pouring. The wind blew, about 90mph. The branches of the dead trees rustled and creaked. Amber suddenly looked pained, and Rachel felt her throat seize up. Finally Amber let her go and they both fell back, her face pale. Rachel was out cold.

"_Daaaannng_…" Mason exclaimed. All eyes looked down at them. "What happened?"

Amber trembled, as did her words. "He's here. He is here…"

"Who?" Bailey demanded, kneeling beside her. "Who's here?"

"Him… The Possessed Lord. He watches us… Right this very moment."

"That sounds crazy!" Mason blurted. Amber didn't respond. She laid there with her eyes opened, still and pale. Bailey grasped the Thaumaturge's hands, she felt cold. She squeezed Amber's hands tightly.

Wolf took out his wand. "Let's get them out of here."

_Z_

Rachel woke up on the sofa in a friend's house. She knew this was Amber's house because of how the house was only big enough for one person, Amber never really wanted a huge house. Plus, this looked like one of the Island Getaway houses, a house Amber picked for herself.

She left the living room, through a small room and down the passage way to a room the Ice wizard turned into a den, for her fortunetelling that she does on the side. Amber stood at a table she kept a crystal ball on. She was staring into it with both hands over it, looking frustrated. Bailey and Erica stood around the table, looking into the crystal ball with her.

Rachel casually stepped into the room. "You're all in here? Where are the boys?" They jerked, they were startled by her presence.

Amber got annoyed and huffed. "I don't know. Not here."

Bailey greeted her a small smile. "We're glad you're okay."

"Yeah, what happened? You just dropped." Erica told her. Rachel shrugged, she couldn't tell what happened in Nightside.

Suddenly Amber let out a frustrated grunt. She slammed a hand onto the table. "I can't find him!" she exclaimed. "I can't get his image."

"Relax, Am," Bailey said. "It doesn't matter who or what that Possessed Lord looks like, or where he is. It's not like he did any harm to us anyway."

"It does matter!" Amber snapped. She went over to a blue and yellow case and took it down from the shelf. She set it on a table nearby and opened it up, and took out another crystal ball, a spare one that she'll sometimes carry with her.

She slipped it in her pocket. "I'm going to see the headmaster about this. Maybe he'll figure it out. He should know anyway." her voice sounded sharp.

"Maybe I should go with you." Rachel offered. "In fact, we should all go."

With the same amount of sharpness in her tone, Amber stated, "Alone." then teleported out. With that, the room fell silent.

It stayed like that for a few minutes, before Bailey decided to break the silence. "Maybe she's just a little irritated. Nothing to worry about. I would be too if the dumb thing decided not to work with me." Erica frowned, it was still no excuse for her to snap at them like that. Then again ever since Amber recovered from her slumber, she seemed a little more testy than usual. And Amber had never gotten _that_ grouchy before.

Slowly, Bailey added, "Maybe I should go with her. I'd hate for her to run into any…trouble."

"No, I'll go. I think I should anyway." And Rachel couldn't explain why.

Erica pursed her lips, placing both hands on her hips. "Well _I_ think we should leave her be."

"And _I'm_ going after her anyway." Bailey wanted to object, she wanted to be there by her best friend's side. Besides, Rachel was only going because she feels that responsible of everyone.

Erica wanted to speak against the whole thing, although decided not to. "Oh…alright." the Diviner spoke reluctantly. "Well, I'm gonna go home for a bit. Call me if you need something." and instantly teleported away. The remaining two wizards left as well.


	2. Stranger Danger

2- Stranger Danger

_Rachel teleported to the Commons in front of the headmaster's house. She went inside and headed for the office._

Headmaster Ambrose and Amber stood at his desk, gazing into her crystal ball. The fortunetelling wizard waved her hands over the crystal ball repeatedly, the image remained cloudy. Her face twisted into an expression of frustration. Ambrose was studying her with a certain level of concern.

Amber's sigh stated her exasperation. "You see that? Nothing. It didn't clear up, not even a little bit." after staring at the crystal ball, she looked up at him as if he had the answers to everything. "I'm hoping you know a solution to this?"

Ambrose still stared at her. Something must be wrong, Rachel thought. He's looking at her like he's looking at something unusual. After what happened earlier, she changed, into someone angry and very irritable. And she was too frustrated to notice this herself.

Finally he says, "I do have my own crystal ball we can look into, you know. Perhaps we'll have a better chance with that one."

She stares at him, as if she didn't understand his words. When she had finally spoke, her tone was low. "Fine." She followed him to his crystal ball at the other side of the room.

"Now let's see about this…Possessed Lord?" Amber nodded. "You're welcome to join us, Miss Thorn." the sudden sentence caught the Necromancer off guard.

She joined them, the headmaster and the Ice wizard kept their gazes fixed on the crystal ball. The crystal ball was heavily clouded, like Amber's. Clenching her fists, the Thaumaturge looked as if she wanted to scream. But soon enough, the foggy substance began to clear up, just only a tidbit. It showed some figure in a black cloak, barely could they even see that.

By now, Amber was slowly unclenching her fists. "That's him." she says. She was starting to become her usual calm self. Although the mist wouldn't clear up any more than it already had. It stayed like that for a certain amount of time, before the mist covered the view completely. But the Ice wizard was satisfied enough, simply because she got a small glimpse of him.

"The Possessed Lord is a difficult being to look at. But we did manage to get a small taste of what he looks like." Ambrose shivered. "Is it me, or is it getting a little chilly in here?"

Rachel looked at Amber, her eyes had closed, but she found this light blue mist surrounding her. It was making the air chilly. Her curiousness forced her to ask. "Amber…how are you doing that?" When Amber opened her eyes, the pupils were a crystal blue instead of its original color, brown. And her skin… It looked paler than usual. The Necromancer was shocked, and perhaps a little horrified. She couldn't stop staring at her.

Neither could Ambrose. His eyes widened. "By Bartleby… Amber, are you feeling okay?" she simply nodded.

Rachel's mouth dropped. "Amber, your hair! It-it's white!" and it had turned white…well, a baby blue. It even looked a bit sparkly, like snow.

She became angry. "Okay, now your just making things up."

"Look at yourself in the mirror, dear." Ambrose told her, and gestured towards the mirror on the wall right behind her. So she turned to face the mirror, her reflection caused her mouth to drop instantly to the floor. Her skin looked almost as white as snow, her hair was nearly the color of ice. Her lips had turned into a darkish purple. She looked as if she was in the cold for weeks.

She touched the back of her left hand, feeling her skin. She could barely feel it, or anything. Her hands, her fingers felt numb. She touched her head, trying to feel her hair. Her hands still lacked any sense of touch, but her fingers could still run through it. Perhaps a little hard. The only thing that hadn't change were her clothes.

Amber turned back around. She looked so horrified, like she could die from shock. Each word shook, barely audible. "What…what happened to me?" Rachel searched through the back of her mind for what could of happened to set this off. She drew a blank each time.

"Let's see… What were you doing this morning?" he asked Amber.

She tilted her head towards her crystal ball. "Looking for the Possessed Lord."

"What about yesterday?"

"Um…" she took a minute before answering. "We went somewhere... To the Sunken City, I think-"

"What? You were where?"

She tried to ignore his shocked tone and continued. "Yeah. We faced a couple of ghosts, and one had a lantern." she paused, that may have been it. "Oh- oh yeah, mist came out of it."

"That was yesterday?" Rachel remembered. Although now that she thought about it, it did happen early last night. Her next question resulted to how long she slept.

The headmaster didn't look too happy. "What in the world where you doing in there?"

"Finding some stuff." Ambrose was about to ask "What stuff?" when Amber said. "Some things I needed for a potion."

"Was anyone with you?"

Amber nodded. "Rachel was there. So was Mason, Bailey, Wolf, and Erica."

Ambrose nodded. "I want both of you to go find them at once. Everyone should be at their first classes. Once you find everyone, bring them directly _here_. Don't tell them anything." both wizards nodded and left the office.

It was simple. All they have to do is visit only the Storm and Fire classrooms. It was amazing neither of them realized there was school. Both have excuses, only Amber's was a good excuse. Rachel's would be that she overslept, in which she pretty much did. Amber's was that she was sick, although decided to come but was late. It does look obvious. Her cheeks had begun to look a little reddish. She went on and on about how irregular she looks. And her voice did sound a little stuffy. Maybe she is sick, and could be why she looks the way she looks right now. Hopefully she's just ill and it didn't come from the mist… Well, either way it's still serious.

They were there at the Storm school, another wizard student stood in the middle of the road, with a notebook in his hand and a pen stored behind his left ear. He approach them once he saw them, so they stopped.

Rolling her eyes, Rachel murmured "Hall monitor." His hat partly hung in his face, shading his eyes. He readjusted his hat once he caught up with them.

"Well well, roaming instead of working in class?" shaking his head in mild disgust, he removed the pen from his ear and began writing on the notepad. "Quite funny, I haven't seen either of you enter the school earlier this morning." his eyes shifted to them. "Shall I also throw in a tardy?" Rachel rolled her eyes again.

"Patrick." Amber breathed, more like a huff. "We really don't have time. Ambrose wants us and our friends at his office ASAP. Write us up later, this is urgent."

He stared at her with curiousness, his pen lifted from the paper for his chin to rest on. "I can see that, Miss Spiritstone. Why are you here if you're utterly under the weather?"

"That's just it, I don't feel good. So you'd be best off if you don't provoke me."

"I wasn't given this job for nothing." he ripped the page off and handed the slip to Rachel, then began to write one for Amber.

"She's sick." Rachel said. "Don't give her detention."

"She should of stayed home, then. There aren't any rules against it." he ripped that sheet out and held it out to Amber. "And I highly suggest you get an okay to go home. We don't need a disease like that to spread."

Stubborn, the ice wizard folder her arms. "I'm not taking that slip. Especially if I'm just going to get sent home."

"You can serve detention another time; once you're rid of that flu."

"I still refuse."

"Well I'll hold onto it." Patrick slipped the note under his hat. His expression became hard, and his tone dripped demand. "Now go to class." he turned smartly on his heel, like a Marleybonian soldier would, and walked away. Both girls exchanged eye rolls, Rachel tossed her slip into the small pond next to the storm school.

Wolf and Erica were there. Wolf was one of the few academically advanced wizards, and he was considered one of Ravenwood's top students. So was Patrick. So they rivaled the other. Erica was given a tardy too, because she was with them minutes earlier before they came themselves. Wolf had Whispered to her about school when she went home.

Of course Professor Balestorm didn't like Amber and Rachel interrupting his class, and so asked the reason for their presence. Rachel's class starts a little before lunch to sometime after. Amber's doesn't start until after. All they had to say was that the headmaster wanted to see Erica and Wolf. All eyes in the room, including Balestorm's, noticed Amber's new appearance. Of course the Thaumaturge didn't give any the chance to question, for she left the room immediately. She wouldn't answer the two Diviners properly either. All she would say was "You'll see."

Shortly they were in the Fire classroom. Again, they just needed to say Mason and Bailey were needed by Headmaster Ambrose. Professor Falmea said Bailey left moments ago and hadn't returned, and Mason never showed up. A soft sigh passed through Rachel's lips. Bailey must of ditched class, and Mason's either skipping or oversleeping.

They had to get out of Ravenwood to avoid Patrick or anyone at the school. Neither would it be wise if they roamed about in the Commons. Perhaps the Shopping District was okay. Amber Whispered to Bailey while Rachel Whispered to Mason. Only Bailey replied back, saying her and Mason were having trouble with this mysterious fellow. He was dealing with the stranger, but she feared something unspeakable would go down drastically, and would feel better if they came as soon as they could.

* * *

"I'm warning you, mister." Mason took a defensive stance, standing in front of Bailey. He tightly gripped his wand in his right hand, his voice prossessed some threat. "We don't know you, and you seem highly suspicious. You better leave, or I'm getting the Wizard City guards." and the park guard wasn't that far away.

This person was tall, slightly taller than an average man. He wore a dark red cloak, the hood shaded his face with darkness, the cloak hid his feet. His hands were coated with the black leather gloves, and the blood red scythe at his back was was supported by a chain that crossed his torso diagonally.

He made a move to step forward, and Mason was ready to set him on fire. So the man-or whatever he may be-held a hand out in defense. "I assure you there is no need for that." he spoke coolly. His voice had contained some rasp. "You two must come with me. If you do; I will teach you the most powerful spells not even the strongest Pyromancers know. I have the key to eternal power…"

The two fire wizards exchanged confused looks, then gazed at the stranger with suspicious looks. "How do you know we're Pyromancers?" Bailey watched him with caution.

"And how do we know we can trust you?" Mason relaxed a bit, a spell ready just in case. He took two small steps forward with his arms folded, he eyed him doubtfully. "If you know a way to get us to trust you, enlighten us, yeah? Cause we're having enough trouble standing here looking at your creepy mug."

The being stood there, not another sound coming from him. Mason huffed "Let's go, Bailey." and started walking down the stone path behind him. Bailey took one last awkward stare at him, then turned to follow the other fire student.

His voice had came back. "Fine. How about I teach you a spell now?" both ignored him and kept walking. Mason was already far ahead, long gone. Though Bailey was still in his sight, walking awfully slow. Again he tried. "A powerful spell it is. No cost required!" she stopped dead in her tracks.

Her back still faced him, although she was able to feel his presence getting closer and closer. His next sentence was heard from right behind. "Would you like a free spell, my lady? I would gladly teach you the spell." she stood perfectly still, and he knew she was thinking about it. He continued. "If you happen to like the spell I could always teach you another. And another. All the powerful spells a Pyromancer like yourself should know."

Now she was curious. But she didn't fully turn her head towards him. "There a reason I should learn these spells?"

A pause. Once he spoke again, she felt his breath against her ear. "Think of those strong wizards you often see around the city. They think because they achieved the high ranks they're better than most. They look down poorly at the lower ranks, simply because you're a lower rank and that you have useless baby spells."

"I don't." Bailey was already offended. Adept ranks don't have useless spells. Of course not, right?

He went on. "Of course, my lady. But let's see; what spells can you use when you're an Adept ranked?"

"Wyldfire and Meteor Strike are…" now that she thought about it, she couldn't finish her sentence. Meteor Strike wasn't the best fire spell, certainly no, but it is an ok spell. Wyldfire though, was a great benefit to fire spells. Neither spells are terribly that bad.

He waited for her to finish the sentence, even though he knew she wouldn't. So he ended that with "Right." He backed from her and continued. "But my spells can fix that problem. I have spells no one has yet to discover. Of all schools. Though I only give to those like you." she didn't say anything. There was nothing else to say, but many things to think about.

"Yes, think about it. With these powerful spells of mine, you'll show them all. You will expose the high ranked of their pettiness against your new strength. You would be powerful- most powerful Pyromancer the entire Spiral has ever witness. No more small, meek, petty spells. Trust me. You will have a better chance of destroying the Spiral-if you wanted to-than that Malistaire fool. Show them. Show them ALL!" he spoke those words as if he was giving a powerful speech.

Bailey was never power-hungry, but these spells did sound intriguing. Besides that, she _was_ falling a little behind. So why not? Why not see how the first spell goes?

Finally she turns around completely to face him. She smiled. "Okay, sure. I'll learn one of your spells."

"Most excellent." his voice was cool again. "Now, you must look deeply into my eyes. I must to weigh your inner strength."

She was going to ask why that must be, until another question surfaced. "What eyes?" because of how well his hood tinted his face so shadowy, it was hard to locate his eyes.

"Just look straight at me, and you will see them." this time she hadn't the urge to ask why, and so did what he told.

After a moment of staring at him, her insides began to tingle. She felt a little weird and didn't know why, but guessed it was him transferring the power inside her. Two spots on his face had flashed a bright red so suddenly. Those must be his eyes. Though the Pyromancer was unable to move instantly after the flash. She couldn't move her eyes either. The color of her skin had drained. Her opened mouth showed the level of her surprise. And lastly, everything gave up on her. She collapsed on the pavement out cold.

He cackled wickedly. He bent over and examined the unconscious Pyromancer. "I may have not gotten the other wizard, but you were stupid enough." _She must have it. _That power_. I sense it, it's strong coming from her. And that boy._ He stood up and looked around. _There has to be four more wizards around here somewhere._ He stayed like that for moments, then bent over her again.

"BAILEY!" he wasn't startled at all by the sudden scream. With the same level of calmness, he stood.

_It's the boy._ Indeed, Mason came back. And that sense he had gotten from him and Bailey, it was much stronger now. Four more wizards were with the Pyromancer. And he was so livid, he almost hoped the boy doesn't overdo it.

The heated wizard charges at him with a wand that looked like some sort of blade. He raised it, as if he was plotting to slice through him. He waited for the right time, before swinging one of his hands. That swipe knocked his blade clean out of his grasped. The others gasped at this, and Mason froze, right there in front of him.

Unfortunately Mason didn't recover from his shock in time. The being stepped back and motioned his index finger upward. Mason was lifted from his feet. He floated in the sky! The fire wizard flailed his arms and kicked about, screaming you could add, as he was being twirled around and around. Using the same finger the being turned and pointed at the statue, Mason was tossed from where he spun and collided into the head of the unicorn statue. Whoever saw that would of felt it.

Moments he hung on the statue's head, then eventually fell off, making a dull thud when he landed. After studying the now unconscious wizard, he stared at the remaining wizards, as if nothing happened. From witnessing what they just saw, blood had drained from each face. Amber was now literally white. Erica was scared to death, Wolf was completely speechless. The only thing Rachel was able to do was merely push her hair back from her face.

The being was absolutely satisfied. _This is just too easy._ He took about three or four steps forward, then stopped. He stood as still as a statue, and silently dared any of them to make another attack. Again, he started to move towards them, and stopped about a stone's throw away. It was another stare off, and the Necromancer decided to expose her staff. The others followed. Another moment went by as they stayed like that, he was going to do anything.

_Slow and steady._ Rachel started to make small steps towards him, watching him warily. All of a sudden he took his right hand, formed it as in like he had something small in it, and forcefully threw that hand down. A flash of blue, and all four of them instantly dropped to the ground, and hadn't moved since.

He found them. He found and captured them all. Just like that.


	3. Resistance Initiate

3- Resistance Initiate

_It was nearing lunchtime…_

Patrick's shift of being hall monitor was finished, and he was about to go to his first class: Intro to Balance with Arthur Wethersfield. That is until he ran into Mr. Lincoln in front of the Myth school. He wondered why he wasn't at the Golem Tower.

Still, he tipped his hat. "Hello Mr. Lincoln. Fancy meeting you here."

"Greetings, Mr. Wildspear. I've been looking for you."

"Really? What for?"

"The headmaster, son. Merle Ambrose wants you in his office _immediately_."

This was news to the Sorcerer. What could the headmaster want with him? And why is it so urgent? "Am I in some sort of trouble?"

The registrar shook his head. "None whatsoever. But he needs you-and your group-to see him immediately. I'm sure whatever it is, it's very important." With a nod, Patrick sprinted towards the Life school.

The wooden double doors busted wide open once he reached the classroom, the doors made a _crash_ sound when they flew back and bounced off the walls. Everyone stopped whatever they were doing to gaze at the Sorcerer as if he were crazy. Moolinda Wu paused also, and turned to his direction. "Is everything alright, Patrick?"

"Ms. Wu, this is an emergency." Patrick spoke urgently and quickly, a grave look on his face. "The headmaster requests Austin Spellrider at his office. _Now_."

All eyes moved to a curly redheaded boy in green and brown. Austin gets up and walks out the door as if no one paid him no mind. Once he was out of the class, Patrick held a hand up in an apologetic way with a sheepish grin, and gently closed both doors.

As they headed for the Myth school, Austin asked, "Everything okay, Pat?"

Patrick shrugged. "I ran into Mr. Lincoln minutes ago. He said the headmaster needed us."

_X_

After they rounded the whole gang, the group of six reported to the headmaster's place as told. As Patrick said; something must be wrong if the headmaster is summoning _them_ of all people. Austin thought sarcastically, why not ask Rachel and them instead?

The six of them stood in front of the headmaster's deck. Ambrose looked a little sour. Indeed, something _is_ wrong. He sat with his hands folded on his desk, lips pursed. "Resistance of the city, I have urgent news for you. And you must carefully heed my words."

Each of them glanced at each other, then Patrick takes out his notepad and pen. "Shoot."

He nods. "Have you happened to see Amber and Rachel earlier, Patrick?"

"Indeed I have. I wrote both of them up, but both had stated neither were going to show up for detention."

"Suppose you can let that slide. As of right now, there's a more important matter at hand."

"And that is, sir?"

Ambrose's expression went hard. "I've sent them to find the rest of their group, but they haven't shown up. And it's fairly been two hours now."

"And I suppose you want us to find them?" Austin stepped in. "We haven't the clue if they're still here in the city."

"I'm sure they are." the headmaster assured. "But I'm afraid that's not all. I have been reported that there are spies running around Wizard City. They are dressed in dark colored cloaks. We haven't found out who or what they are exactly, though this is dreadful news. I fear that no one may be safe with these spies lingering about. And so, I'm afraid they could have gotten into a bit of trouble."

"So you want us to find them, and do something about the spies?" a blacked haired, gothic Necromancer spoke out. He folded his arms. "What if they're kidnapped? We'll never find them then."

The headmaster shook his head. "I encourage you to stay out of the sights of the spies as much as possible. However if they do manage to spot you, you can try to defend yourselves. Or run away. Just whatever you do, don't let them capture you."

They went outside in the Commons. Austin was the leader of the Resistance...well, Wiz-Resistance they were called. He and Patrick started the group, together. They originally formed the Resistance to go against Malistaire when he was still around. They were a group of six, though two members suddenly dropped out of the school and left Wizard City, neither returned since. But then they found two females who willingly joined the group, so the Resistance became a group of six again.

Perhaps they may not be much of a very successful team, but each were very determined. They had an awesome leader; he's headstrong, very responsible, courageous, witty, all the characteristics an outstanding leader should have. He had a very excellent team, especially the brilliant deputy Patrick Wildspear himself.

And although the team maybe great, they succeed in practically nothing. As for these crises that happened throughout the Spiral, they were never the first to act. If they were so great, perhaps they would always be on top of thing. And besides; mostly what they'll do is stay in the city, and maybe decide to go another world if they so choose so, but they're here in the city and do almost nothing. So they were often referred to as the "Do-nothing Squad". And that was why many look down on them as a team.

But the superior Austin Spellrider was willing to change that. That is, if six specific wizards would just sit down for once and not be so much in the way of things…

Austin, arms folded over his chest, looked around the empty Commons. Indeed it was empty, not even Prospector Zeke was anywhere in sight. Patrick was going over the notes he took, took a few glances at the blank scene before him, and licked dried lips.

"We must look out for spies…" While closing the notepad and putting it away, he mumbled. "and those six." each one of them rolled their eyes, except for a brunette-haired female Diviner who frowned.

"Don't think so badly about it, guys." she said. "Look on the bright side; we were given a big mission by the headmaster himself! With spies running all over the place too. We're moving up!"

A white haired Conjurer scowled, more so at her optimism. "It doesn't even matter. Why should we care if those losers actually were kidnapped? That's less of a pain to deal with."

"Unless we'll be rewarded handsomely for it, then perhaps we _should_ do something." the Necromancer smirked. A Pyromancer with waist length pink hair simply folded her arms over her chest.

The Diviner frowned. "See? This is why we don't have much of a good reputation. Maybe we should stop being so bitter of everything about them."

Patrick shrugged. "Eh."

Finally the storm wizard crossed her arms and faced away from them. "And that's our problem. We're too _jealous_."

Each one of them scowled at her in silence for a good few minutes. Finally Austin broke the silence. "That'll be enough, Ryan."

Ryan, the storm wizard, whipped around to face him. Her expression was sharp. "You know it's true, Austin. We're acting like a bunch of sore losers. We don't need to compete. We're better than that." she went over and pushed her index finger into his chest with each word she spoke. "And deep down inside you, you know that." She removed her finger, and Austin placed one of his hands over his chest. She was poking too hard.

Though, he _suppose_ she was right, and admitted that to himself with a sigh. "You're right, Ryan. Suppose we should get down to business." he turned to everyone else. "Okay, so, we should begin our search. Let's start in Unicorn Way."

"Captain," Patrick politely interrupted. "Perhaps we should split up? Wouldn't that be easier?"

Austin shook his head. "I don't think that'll be a good idea. I'm a little worried of what these spies are capable of." Actually, he only wanted to remain as a whole group and see what's what first. From there he'll decide whether or not they should separate into smaller groups. He walked down the stone road and over Rainbow Bridge, his five companions followed.

_X_

The park was empty. No merchants were around, no street guards were standing by. Nothing. It was the same for the streets. Why, there weren't even any little critters roaming about. Unicorn Way was totally vacant. It felt like a deserted land, like they somehow were separated from the city. Maybe this wasn't Unicorn Way. Sure, there weren't always a lot of people walking around in these parts, but the whole street had never been-felt-so bare.

And they were only left with one question: what happened?

The rosy-haired Pyromancer spoke in a whisper. "There's nobody here…"

"Duh," the Myth wizard stated in a "duh, of course" kind of way.

Now that he thought about it, Austin hadn't recalled seeing a guard at the entrance of the area. What about the other parts of town? Are they the same way? What in the Spiral did those spies do?

He wiped his nose. "Okay. I guess we should split up." he glanced at each of them. "Cole and Wolf, you two search in Cyclops Lane." Cole was the Conjurer and Wolf was the Necromancer. "Haley and Patrick look in Triton Avenue." Haley is the Pyromancer. "Ryan and I will go to Firecat Alley." he thought he heard moaning, but wasn't sure. "Let's do this, wizards."

"Wait." Patrick began looking around, he could of sworn he heard something. It was a faint sound, but it sounded like a person. He tiptoed near a bush and stopped to listen, yet couldn't hear anything. So he moved towards the bridge.

There was the sound again, it was a moan. So there was someone here.

Cocking a brow, Austin began to follow, as did the others. The Sorcerer crossed the bridge to a separate circular isle and searched underneath benches and both inside and behind bushes. He couldn't find anything. That was when he turned to face the enormous unicorn statue. His eyes climbed from the base to the top of the statue, and stared at it for a long time.

"Is everything okay, Patrick?" he heard Ryan ask. He ignored her as he examined a few cracks on the unicorn's head. _Someone was trying to break it._ Or maybe so. The muffled moan was slightly louder this time. He couldn't exactly tell if the sound was coming from the statue, or behind.

Patrick went over to the statue, and got as close as he possibly could. He was positioned as if going to place an ear against the sculpture when he spotted a person laying behind the statue. It looked like a female. She looked awfully wet, he wondered if she had any wounds on her. Her back was towards him after all.

He stared at her as if he found something new and unusual. He slowly moved away from the statue base to walk around to the girl.

He heard his name from Austin's voice. But he paid him no mind. He kneeled next to the girl. Her hair looked almost black, only because of how wet it was. So it gave him the idea her hair was originally brown. Her brown and green hat hung in front of her face, so he pushed it back enough to see her face. She was a pretty young thing, she looked to be fifteen years of age. What was a young girl doing here, especially wet and unconscious?

He lightly brushed her wet hair from her face. What could of happened to her?

Austin walked over to join him. "Patrick, what is going…" the sight of Patrick with some girl stopped his sentence. Her head rested on his lap, and he sat there, lost within the sight of her. The Theurgist frowned. "Put her down."

Patrick looked up at his boss, and shook his head. "It's not what you're thinking. Look, I just found her here behind the statue. And I wanted to find out if she was alive." his gaze switched back to the girl. "She seems to be breathing just fine."

The leader's stern look remained. "And now you know she's alive. I'll repeat myself for the last time," he paused. "Never mind." he went over to them and kneeled opposite of Patrick. "Is she hurt?"

"Nope. Just wet." They both stared at the slumbering female wizard. The Sorcerer began to smile absently. _She's actually…kind of pretty._

"Oh my goodness!" Ryan and the others came along. The Diviner sat on her knees next to Austin and examined the girl. "What in the Spiral… What happened?"

Haley crossed her arms. "Who is this chick?"

"And where did she come from?" Wolf stole another glance at her. "Do you know if she's single?" just for that, Haley rammed her elbow into his arm.

Cole made a loud sigh. "Who cares? We have more important things to worry about." Ryan looked up sharply at him.

Soon her eyes slowly lifted, revealing emerald eyes. Eyes that went perfectly with her tan skin, with that cute facial expression of hers… _What's wrong with me?_ Patrick let her sit up, confused eyes glanced at each one of them surrounding her. She spoke in a low tone. "What's going on?" she took another minute of looking at each of them again. "Are-are you here to rescue me?"

The myth wizard sighed, softer this time. "We've just found you there. How were we supposed to know you needed to be rescued?"

"Cole." Austin motioned him to stop talking. He then brought his attention back to the young girl. "Don't worry, you're in safe hands with us. We're here to protect you now."

She smiled. "Sweet." Although her smiled faded almost instantly. "But you're too late. There were these two nasty people in cloaks who tried to drown me in the river." she pointed at the stream to her right. "No matter how hard I tried to fight back, I couldn't, like they somehow charmed me into not resisting. Then suddenly they had to leave. So they just left me here ever since." She began to tear up. "They dragged me from the school, just to do these things to me."

"And you just went with them willingly, didn't you? Didn't you even bother to ask any questions or whatever? Call for help or something?" Cole shook his head in disgust. "Little girl, haven't your parents told you not to go off with strangers?"

"I tried to." the girl said. "But like I said, it's like they put some kind of charm on me. I wasn't able to do anything. I just did everything they told me, like I had no choice." she paused. "Well, I met them in Ravenwood outside the schools. They said the headmaster wanted to see me, and I just went with it."

"And you were charmed, you say?" Patrick asked.

She nodded. "Yes. Er, at least I think I was… I must have! _Ugh_."

The Balance wizard chuckled. "Don't worry about it. Everything's okay now, and you're safe. That's all that matters."

Austin nodded in agreement. "May I ask for your name, miss?"

She nodded. "Calamity. Calamity Shadowblade."

His eyes widened a bit. "That name sounds awfully familiar…" he stroked his chin with his thumb. Suddenly he said, "Theurgist... Are you a Theurgist?"

Calamity nodded. "Yes! I'm in the class during the morning before I have to switch for Myth."

"Okay! You may or may have not heard my name before, but I'm Austin Spellrider. Life student first, Wiz-Resistance leader second."

"Austin! So you're Austin!" both beamed and each shook with both hands. Suddenly Cole made a sound like he was clearing his throat, though it sounded so impatient.

Both Life wizards stood. "Calamity, allow me to introduce the rest of the team." he looked at the deputy, who also stood with the Diviner. "He is Patrick Wildspear; second-in-command Sorcerer." Patrick greeted her with a tip of his hat. The leader turned to everyone else. "And the rest are Wolf Willowshade, Cole Golden, Ryan Day, and Haley Rainbow." Ryan smiled, Haley and Wolf only nodded a hello, Cole just scowled and crossed his arms.

"Chief," Patrick called out to Austin. "Perhaps we should bring Miss Shadowblade with us? It wouldn't do any good to just leave her here. And it probably wouldn't be any better bringing her back to Ravenwood, she could get into trouble for being gone for a long while."

Austin nodded. "I suppose. We really should get going, in case a spy so happens to show up." he turned to the female Life student. "Resistance, we have just recruited a temp."


	4. Trees

4- Trees

_And so they were off, exploring the rest of the city._

The Shopping District was just as empty as Unicorn Way, no merchants or even at least a few people around. The lights in all the shops were off, even all of the street lights. They've tried going inside a few stores, though all were locked.

It was the same exact way in Ode Town. Even the Bazaar was closed. The Bazaar was never closed during the day, they make way too much money to ever be closed. Patrick never thought of how Wizard City could look so empty, especially since the population was pretty high. Thus, it would be basically no use in checking all the streets, everywhere else was devoid of people. Though they mustn't give up. There could be more people still around, they found Calamity back at the park after all.

And Baldur Goldpaws with his large floating sailboat so happened to be there, but he was already preparing ready to leave. Austin immediately sprinted towards him and called after him. Ryan and Patrick followed while the others waited in front of the crafting shop.

The female Theurgist examined her surroundings gingerly, she spotted a house near the bottom of the hill. _Mom… Dad…_ She wondered if her parents were even home. She must find out if her parents were okay. And so, she started for the house.

"Where are you going, kid?"

Calamity stopped when she heard the Conjurer's voice. She was sure it was his voice, he had that irritated tone whenever he spoke. She replied without turning around to face him. "I need to see my parents. I want to know if they're still here…"

"Well I'm sure mommy and daddy are still home." he stated mockingly. "And I don't think they'll be too happy to find out their little princess is skipping school."

She turned around. "But I wasn't skipping! I would never skip school! I was kidnapped, remember?"

"And how do you expect them to believe that?"

Calamity folded her hands behind her, and smiled cutely. "I can say that you kidnapped me. And they'll believe me, because you're standing right here.

Wolf was watching the other three, but hearing what he just heard drew his attention to those two. Cole glared at her. "You brat. You better not say that." with his wand in his left hand, dropping the top of the wand in the other he added, "If you still intend to, I'll restrain you from doing so." His expression tightened. "I mean what I say, don't make me charm you." The life wizard stared at him, but said nothing more.

Finally the others came back, and Baldur was boarding his ship to go home. The sour expression the leader had already stated that something wasn't right. Well nothing was right from the moment they were called into the headmaster's office

The Necromancer instantly asked. "What happened?"

Austin shook his head. "Wizard City isn't really empty, everyone is just sitting inside their homes."

Haley shrugged. "How is that bad?"

"The spies are threatening the city with a massive attack, or a possible invasion." Patrick continued for the male Theurgist. "Citizens were directed to take refuge, they are to leave for Grizzleheim by this afternoon. Students of Ravenwood Academy are being asked to fight the battle. Wizard City will receive military aid from our many allying worlds of the Spiral. So we will have fighters from different places swooping in pretty soon."

Ryan picked up from there. "Apparently Krokotopia and Dragonspyre were proposed the same threat, so some of our supporters will be supporting them as well, and some of our troops will be sent to those places. The army of spies are great, massive. They intend to do massive damage. Celestia and Zafaria are providing shelter as well as Grizzleheim." Their mouths instantly dropped opened, it was so unexpected. So sudden. It was all happening too fast.

"Baldur is coming back with the troops from Grizzleheim. He will be back in time to take the refugees." Austin leaned against the bridge and placed a hand on his forehead. "What a mess…" For a long time it was silent.

Cole soon broke ice. "So…what does this mean? Do we go back to Ravenwood? Do we continue to look for the girls?"

The male life wizard got off of the bridge. "Let's go report this to the headmaster, in case he doesn't already know. From there we'll figure it out…" he turned around and walked up the hill. Everyone else followed, Calamity stole one last glance at her house.

X

It was all starting to get peculiar. All of the Shopping District was covered in fog. It was difficult to see, the air felt a little humid, since the clouds look a little greyish it just might rain.

And it had started to drizzle when they got to the Commons, the fog was slightly thicker. A few Wizard City guards were at the gates of the headmaster's place. One of them spotted them, and walked towards them. "Resistance?" he asked. "Are you the Resistance?"

Austin nodded. "Yes."

The guard stood straight. "Resistance of Wizard City; headmaster Ambrose already knows of the attack. He wants you to continue looking for the six lost wizards. Mind where you go, though, the whole city will be a battle zone." he saluted the leader. "I wish you all luck and a safe journey."

Austin saluted back. "Thank you. Good luck in the war." The other guards held up their spears above their heads and yelled. They were confident they will send those spies packing.

Patrick managed to seek out a person by the fountain through the fog. From what he could tell they had blue hair, and they appeared to have on a cloak. With their gloved hands they pulled the hood over their head. It's a spy! But there was something that prevented him from calling out to the others. Why wasn't he able to speak aloud?

So he dashed after him.

The spy turned in his direction before taking off. He was heading for Unicorn Way. And the Sorcerer followed.

"Patrick?" Austin saw him run off into the fog, be was barely seeable. "Patrick!" he ran after him. The others caught this and followed, wondering what could of happened.

Unicorn Way was heavily fogged. He could see nothing, just the greyish substance that covered everything. The spy was nowhere in sight. The rain was coming down hard, his hat and clothes were getting soaked. He took small and slow steps farther, he couldn't see any of his surroundings, therefore he must go along carefully.

He walked for about a while longer, he hadn't come across any bridge, or bump into any trees or statues. He was just walking in a fog. Perhaps he should go back, and accept the fact that the spy got away. And that's what he did. But he remained in the fog after minutes of walking. Determined as he was to get out of this fog he still walked.

And then, there was this voice that whispered inside his mind.

_Patrick…_ It wasn't his voice either. The tone was soft, the voice sounded feminine. Though he kept going, his hands in his pockets, his eyes gazing at the ground at his feet. …Is there a way out of here?

Cold, wet, lost, and annoyed. He just didn't know what he could do anymore. Someone must of casted some kind of charm, he could be stuck in one place and not even moving. He was in a trap that just seems impossible to get out of. Nothing to help guide his way, there isn't anything. Just the stone path he walked on for ages, and the fog that'll probably never go away.

_Patrick._ The voice was louder this time. _Patrick, you must stop._ The Sorcerer covered his ears, a weak attempt to block out the voice. Now he started to run, and hoped to get out of here soon. He has to get out.

_You cannot escape…_ He ignored _her_ and ran. Endeavoring an escape he will do. Nothing will stop him from leaving. He mustn't stop.

Although he had, but not by himself. He tried to move again, to walk, but couldn't move from the spot he was in. _Stop, and listen. You must listen._

He sunk to his knees, the least he could do. He covered his ears again, and shook his head. He shouted. "No! I won't! You can't make me!"

_Unfortunately, I must._

"Shut up! Go away!" He shook, eyes tightly closed. His hands moved from his ears to his eyes. "Leave me alone! Let me out of here!" Suddenly, the rain stopped. It almost looked like the sun could come out, but the mist remained. Patrick looked at the ground, he was no longer on a path, now he was on grass. Grass, all over the ground.

Everything was quiet, and the voice hadn't returned. Though there were soft pitter patters coming from behind. When he turned around, he found Calamity running towards him, she looked relieved to see him. How did she get here?

She panted when she finally reached him, her hands on her knees. The Sorcerer placed both of his hands on her shoulders. "How did you find me?" She took a minute to catch her breath first before she could answer.

"We-we saw you run this way…" she puffed, and looked up at him when she was able to.

Their eyes met. He stared into her emerald eyes as she gazed into his cerulean eyes. Absently her lips curved into a smile, she stood up straight and he let his hands slide to her forearms. He was uncertain why, he couldn't remove his eyes from her. It was the same case for the Theurgist. Neither could he let go.

For a moment he was able to look elsewhere, behind her. A vine hung behind her, he never saw any vine when he was here. Her giggling brought his attention back to her. Patrick wasn't sure what Calamity was laughing at, but eventually he found her hands resting on his shoulders. But they just met, surely neither felt anything… And they couldn't be close friends, it's only been about an hour.

Just in time, he caught the vine wrapping itself around her waist. He gasped and instantly released her. "Calamity! Look out!" She was immediately on full alert, looking around to see what he was trying to point out. And she was lifted into the air.

She screamed and flailed her arms about. When Patrick found the owner of that vine he froze in horror. A massive tree monster! It had six root legs, they were quite long and looked sturdy. The body was the trunk, it's face was near the top. It had large, wild eyes. It's mouth looked like it was carved on, he noticed the sharp "teeth". The leaves were the hair, it looked like a giant green Afro, only with some vines hanging down. Oh yeah, it had two long thick branches for arms, one on each side. It had three "fingers" on each branch, and they looked sharp.

Patrick drew his wand, and summoned a scorpion. The scorpion approached the tree monster and crawled up. Unfortunately the monster merely flicked it off, the bug landing on the ground with a _splat_, and disappeared. He tried again, waving his wand. A small tornado was created, and it flew into the tree, which hadn't done nothing but fade out. Calamity was up there crying for help, there must be a way to slay this beast.

Finally he thought of a spell that should help. He waved his wand, and a medium-sized fire ball shot into the tree. It lit up on fire in almost an instant. The tree sat there to evaporate, and the vine that had the life wizard snapped, and now she was falling. The Sorcerer rushed to the spot she was going to land and held out his arms. She dropped into them.

Once the tree was completely gone he heard someone calling for Calamity, it came from a farther distance. Patrick set her back on her feet, and Austin showed up. He paused and looked at the balance student. "Patrick." he breathed. "Why did you run off like that?"

Looking out into the fog, Patrick answered, "I thought I saw a s-" he was interrupted by Calamity's yell. He turned his head back around to find Austin tied up in some vines that grew from the ground. The male Theurgist fought and struggled, he couldn't get free. The others showed up, they seemed to of came out of nowhere. More plants had grown and tangled them up as well.

_You must listen to me, young Sorcerer. You are bound to meet your fate. Your destiny lies ahead of you._ The voice was no longer inside his head. Anyone was able to hear it. _You must walk down your chosen path._

"What _chosen path_?" Suddenly some vines tied him up, his ankles and wrists tied by them. They lifted him a few feet from the ground, as well as the others. Patrick fought as much as he could. "Is it my destiny to die? Death?"

_Of course not. It is something very important._

"Like what?" he demanded. "What's so important?"

_You will have to see with your own eyes. A hero must find out for himself._

The others had stopped trying to fight with the plants and listened to the voice the spoke in the air. Austin had to ask. "Patrick, who is that?" Patrick, in his state, managed a shrug.

Suddenly the vines disappeared, and each fell flat on their faces. _You must take things into your own hands, Patrick Wildspear. _Lazily he picked up his head, a bunch of these tall forest trees stood before him.

"A forest from out of nowhere?" he stood and gazed at the forest before him.

_Your journey begins now. Best of luck to you: Hero of Gardenia._ The fog wasn't lifted, only pushed back behind them. His mind filled up with great wonder. Exactly what path was destined for him? And, what is this _Gardenia_? What _she_ had just called him, he couldn't possibly be the hero of this world that he's never heard of.

_Well after all, I _am_ the hero of Avalon._ It didn't really mean anything considering this Gardenia place, though if Patrick was able to save his own homeland, Avalon, saving another world of the Spiral shouldn't be so difficult. Especially with the help of his companions.

They entered the area of trees in a single file. It was a little hazy in here, giving the forest more of a greenish look. They walked on damp dirt, ahead looked like nothing more than just a bunch of trees.

It got darker as they went deeper. And the trees started to do the most strangest things. The leaves rustled on each tree, the odd part was that there wasn't any kind of wind blowing. When they've gotten farther ahead; the bark of some trees were coming off all on its own, gradually falling off the trunks. Soon that stopped, and the trees were perfectly still. Then there was a large crackling sound that spread across the forest. Each and every one stopped to look around.

Ryan examined each tree surrounding them. "Everyone heard that, right?" she looked around again. To herself she muttered, "Where did it come from?" The ground shook, a sound of a _crash_ that followed was remote. But they continued onward, the distant crashing noise followed them, with the ground shaking occasionally. Soon they came to a part of a forest with a slanted tree, it made like some kind of archway. A ginormous tree stood in front of them, as well as a sign that stood in front of it.

Austin tried to take a closer look, but the black ink was all smeared, it was hardly readable. Ryan was keeping track of the crashing noises, and when they made it to this point it all stopped, like she only thought or imagined the trees falling. No. Let's say that she only heard the sounds when they walked. Now that they stopped, she heard nothing. And unfortunately, she was unable to prove so. But… Austin and Calamity could. They're life wizards, even though the falling trees were far away they should feel some kind of sensation in the ground with their feet. Or at least _something_.

One of the Theurgists, Calamity, went up to the large tree. She placed an ear against the trunk, pressed all fingers from each hand against it, and stayed like that, as if she was trying to listen to something. She balled her left hand into a fist and knocked on it. Oddly it sounded hollow, she wondered how that could be until she found a hole not too far above her head. A squirrel stuck it's head out and looked down at her, staring. She looked at it with a soft, apologetic smile.

Wolf leaned against the tree. He rested his head on it and released a long sigh. Looking up at the many long branches of the tree he heard a small crackling noise, coming from that same tree. Quickly he pushed himself away from it, but it continued.

"What did you do?" he heard Haley exclaim.

Defensively he shrugged and stated, "Nothing. Not a darn thing." The others stopped whatever it was they were doing and gazed up the huge tree. The squirrel crawled from the hole and onto Calamity's shoulder. Austin backed away from the sign and watched the tree with worried eyes.

Patrick eyed him, then back at the tree. _It's going to fall._ He was sure the leader was thinking the same thing.

The Diviner's eyes went wide when her gaze shifted to the top of the tree. Patrick looked there too. That top part was coming down, it was going to land exactly on top of them! Immediately he screamed. "IT'S COMING DOWN!" Immediately they all scattered.

All except Ryan.

Her mouth practically dropped to the floor. Both of her fear and shock paralyzed her. The others called and screamed for her, though it was like she can't hear them. Cole dashed towards her, grabbed her by the sleeve he pulled her out of the way. The top part of the tree landed with a loud, earth shaking crash. Another part of the tree, a bit larger in fact, came down as well. When it landed it took down the little archway the slanted tree made, and crushed the first part that fell.

They took off and started running, all the other trees fell as they passed them, as if they plotted to crush them. Somehow, Patrick was in the lead. He suddenly tripped, and he wasn't sure over what. He tried to get up, but everyone else crashed into him as he did. When he was able to he looked up, just in time to catch a tree about to fall on top of them.


	5. War and Gore

5- War and Gore

_"Come on. Hurry up now!"_

The sharp and tiny object juggled within the shackle. "I'm trying! I'm trying!" It paused for a breif moment. "Why dun't you try pickin' locks wiv needles an' tooth picks an' other stuff instead uv a key?!"

"Zip it! Will you? No one must know we're down here with the prisoners."

For a split second only, purple eyes had partially opened. They closed, then reopened completely, which only detected two green blurs. Both goblins glanced at each other, the one with the needle finally managed to pick the lock, causing the person's hand dropped instantly to her side. When the other lock was picked, the body landed on the rough stone floor with a light thud. The eyes closed again.

"Good! Excellent!" both creatures stepped back, and examined the beings lying on the ground.

The goblin with the needle had placed it in the pocket of a grey hairy tunic. "Wot are they anyway? Are they dead?"

The other goblin, in a blue tunic, gazed at each of the beings that lie on the ground face down. "I don't think so. That one seemed to still have a pulse." the goblin in grey wobbled over to her and pushed back some of her long silver hair to place two of his moldy fingers on the side off her neck.

"Yup. This one's alive alright." The silver haired girl stirred, one of her hands clutched, like she was trying to grasp the floor.

They watch her as she lazily picked her head up, her bright and calm eyes opened once again. They could tell simply by the look in her eyes that she finally sees them.

…

Rachel stares at the two creatures before her, and they stare back. She wasn't sure if she should scream, or blast them, or run. She ended up choosing to fight. Both goblins attempted a grin, showing their brown, dirty and rotten teeth. The one in the grey had one of his bottom teeth missing, the Necromancer winced in disgust.

She pulled herself to her feet and drew her staff, she pointed it at the two creatures. "Who are you? Where am I? What did you do to my friends?"

Both goblins raised their hands in defense. The one in the grey tunic spoke. "Take it easy luv! We ain't here to 'urt ya! We've jus' freed you."

"Freed me? Have you really _freed_ me?" she glanced around the whole room. "Why am I still in a dungeon?" She took another look at the wall behind her and the walls on each side of them. There were chains and shackles, two on each wall. She looked at the pair again, and lowered her staff. "Where are my friends?" The goblins kept looking at the ground around her feet, so she looked on each side of her feet.

Looking to her left, she found Erica and Mason laying on the ground, face down. To her right were Wolf and Bailey, in the same position. This was so strange… the Necromancer couldn't remember anything about being in some dungeon before. And another thing, they were missing a wizard.

Slowly she brought her gaze back toward their direction. "Where's Amber?" she asks.

"Huh?" the goblin in blue scratched the back of his head. "Whom may this Amber be?"

The other goblin looked at him, wide-eyed. "I think she's talking about Witch Girl."

A brow rose. "Who?"

"The witch girl, in the throne room." the blue tunic goblin said. "Her skin's as pale as a ghost, her hair is the color of ice, she has small snowflakes in her hair, and she felt really cold… Is that your Amber?"

"Yes! That is!" she paused. "Why is she in the throne room instead of down here with us?"

The goblins glanced at each of them. "She was the only one who was awake when we brought you to the castle. The master wished to examine her closely."

"Yea." he shrugged. "Though I bet 'e woulduv wanted t' see 'er anyway. She looks real different from the rest o' you." True, she did. Rachel knew what she saw back at the headmaster's place. She just didn't want to believe it.

But those thoughts need to be pushed to the side for now. Right now they need to focus on finding Amber and getting out of here. "Can you take us to her? Now? She could be in serious trouble."

"She had already began making a big scene when you were all brought here. She was out of control! We were hoping you could do something with your friend, so we came down here as soon as we could. You must hurry before the master decides to do something awful to her."

_The master?_ What master was he talking about? Whatever it is, it has to be some kind of creature. It has to be some kind of beast, or-or maybe a ghost. A reptile perhaps? Or… a certain _someone_. The Necromancer's skin immediately turned pale, paler then it already was. "Are you talking about the _Possessed Lord_?" she started to look a little ill. "This isn't his castle…is it?"

Even the goblins shook at the mentioning of his name, but the one in blue spoke with ease. "Oh _good heavens_ no. Thank Gauria for that."

A good minute passed as Rachel stared blankly at him. Although the creature simply stared back. "Who's…_Gauria_? …Don't you mean Bartleby?"

The goblin shook his head. "Nay. She is a fairy, the Great Fairy we call her. She is the one who created this land. Bartleby was the one who created-well recreated-_your_ world, with the great Grandmother Raven of course."

"Wait…" neither goblins knew why she had to spin in a circle, glancing around the room with wide and worried eyes. "We're not even in the Spiral?!" that came out a little too loud, loud enough for it to echo through the whole dungeon. So the goblin hushed her, stating they weren't supposed to be down here. "Well, where are we?"

The goblin tilted his head to the wizards on the ground. "Perhaps we shall wait until after your friends awake."

"Can I at least have your names?"

The blue tunic goblin placed a hand on his chest then moved it to the other. "Amp and Grey."

* * *

Merle Ambrose stared out into the stormy skies. It was raining at a regular pace in the Commons, the grey clouds began to look more and more like storm clouds. The wind picked up, the sound of branches scraping against the stone walls. The air slightly became eerie, though there wasn't a touch of foulness in the air. At least not yet.

_They will be here soon._ He could feel it.

The captain of the Wizard City guards came out onto the balcony. "Sir," the headmaster's head turned slowly in his direction. "Citizens have successfully fled from the city. All of our allies are here; all troops are ready to go. So is all of Ravenwood that are participating in the battle. We await for further instructions."

Ambrose nodded. "Thank you. You and the other captains may begin to give orders." The captain bowed and stepped inside the house. The headmaster returned to staring at the skies.

The commander of the Wizard City guards, with the other leaders from the other different troops, walked outside where a massive army of their soldiers were lined up. They were lined in what world they were from. Troops from Marleybone made one line, troops from Mooshu made another and so on.

Each leader stood in front of them: Wizard City, Zafaria, Grizzleheim, etc. There were even some troops from Dragonspyre and Krokotopia, the deputies led them. The captains were needed back in those places, for those two places are going to be attacked too. All of Ravenwood's staffs and students made a large group in the back. Everyone's wands and weapons were ready.

Ambrose soon joined them outside, with Mr. Lincoln and Gamma by his side. "I thank you all for coming to the city's aid at our darkest hour. Those fiends will strike at any moment now, and it is very important each and every one of you are in position." he stepped back. The commanders for each troop-and the two second-in-commands-stepped forward and began giving orders and handing maps of the city, the places they were told to go were circled. All soldiers saluted their captains and began to march to the places they were told to go, which left the Ravenwood staffs and students there.

Mr. Lincoln counted each student, his eyes widened the more he counted. It was almost all the students. Ambrose was even more worried when he saw even some of the youngest students that looked like they wanted to participate in the battle. He sighed, he was a little worried about what the outcome could be. Although it was all depending on how many people in the spy army are fighting. And, of course, how strong they were.

He took a deep breath. "Students and staffs of Ravenwood; you all will be fighting in Ravenwood. Give it your all, show them why Ravenwood has the most strongest and outgoing students and teachers in all of the Spiral." he smiled. "I believe in each and every one of you." While they all departed for Ravenwood, Ambrose, Mr. Lincoln, and Gamma all went inside the house and headed for the office.

_Rachel, Austin, I hope you all return very soon._

* * *

Somewhere in a desert, in a large castle, was a man in dark armor and clothing with an azure cape draped down his back. Muscles bulged from every possible location across his body. Stringy, navy blue hair ran across his scalp like dead snakes with a silent poison. The sound of his dark metal boots made small echoes as he walked in the halls of the castle to a large room which appeared to be a throne room.

It was a large, golden room. A large golden throne with a crimson cushion sat in front of a huge stained-glass window that reached the ceiling from the ground. There was someone that sat in the throne, with their legs crossed and their forearms resting on the arms of the throne. It was a man, his skin was brown in color and his hair chocolate. He had a mustache that curved upward at each end, he wore a large golden crown, decorated with emeralds and rubies. A bronze staff that had the top half of a snake on top and regular on the bottom leaned against his throne on from the side.

Once he got in front of the throne, the large muscular man bowed. "Good afternoon, my king."

The king nodded. "It certainly will be; as long as everything goes to plan." Folding his hands in his lap he asked, "Are the troops ready? Remember; if we do a good job, Nervada is promised some of the land we are to conquer. And we need more land. _I_ want more land."

"And more land you shall have, my king." the man stood up straight. "Have you chose which land you wanted?"

"Indeed, I have." the king unfolded his legs. "There is land over there that is similar to here: sandy, perhaps rich in oil. They have a large golden pyramid that shines bright in the sun, I hear they have unique treasure in that land… Gah, what was the name of that place? Um…I think it starts with a C? Croc…Crocato… Cokato…"

"Krokotopia, I believe, sire."

With a wave of his hand, the king fell back in his seat. "Whatever it is called matters not. I will change the name once I conquer it." he scoffed to himself. "What kind of name is that anyway? Kroc…whatever."

The man stood there in silence a moment longer before he spoke. "We will be moving out with the Lord's army. We are expected to deport to the realm at any moment now."

"Then go, dang it, go! Go conquer my new land!" folding his hands in his lap again, the king added, "Do not fail me; your punishment will be severe." The man bow again, before turning around and walking away.

Outside at the gates he got on his black steed. Outside the gates were two humongous armies: one army were a bunch of people in dark cloaks while in the other, a great amount were dressed in desert garb, the rest in armor. Everyone was on horses. The blue haired man put on his helmet, a flat hook on top of it, and rode in front of the massive crowd. Everyone was ready and set to take on their large battle ahead.

At the front of the crowd he saw how massive the army was all together. Depending on what will be facing, it should be a piece of cake. Two other men rode over to him, one on each side. One was dressed in desert clothing while the other was cloaked. The skies of the desert began to be covered in greyish clouds, distant storm clouds began to shield the bright rays of the sun.

"We will begin to proceed into our invasion." the muscular guy spoke loudly for the whole group to hear. "Ready yourselves, even though I have no doubt this won't end quickly." He was certain the battle will be easily done with, and that world would soon fall into their clutches. He glanced at the cloaked figure. "Forlorn, I want you to open three portals. You lead some of our troop to the destination of Dragonspyre." Turning to the other man he said, "Algardo, your target is Krokotopia. I will take care of the city." as he said the last sentence he faced forward.

He motioned his horse to walk slightly ahead of them. "Failure is not an option. Let the attack commence!" He whipped his horse with the reigns and the horse took off with a powerful gallop. Raising a fist in the air he yelled, "CHAAAAAARGE!" Everyone else behind him yelled, following not too far behind.

The king was already out on the balcony when he watched the herd of men on their horses zoom across the sandy field. He watched them until three portals were formed, the large flock divided into three separate groups and disappeared into the three portals.

* * *

The two goblins lead Rachel and the others out of the dungeon and up the spiral stairs of the tower. It felt somewhat uncomfortable to her to be between the stone walls of the narrow stairway. It wasn't until a moment later they were finally out.

They left the tower and went across a bridge. When they walked over the bridge they were exposed to the cool, crisp air of the night. The brightness of the moonlight lightened their way to the castle itself. One of the goblins, Amp, unlocked the door with a key that was already inserted in, then closed and locked it back behind them when they were inside.

They walked single-file: the two goblins in the lead, Rachel behind them, Erica behind her, with Wolf behind her, then Mason and Bailey who walked closely to each other, trembling. They walked down the hall, with torches on the walls to guide their way. It was silent for most of the trip. And when it seemed like it's been forever since they began walking down this hall, Mason decided to break the silence.

"Okay, ya'll need to spill." he said to the two goblins up front. "What's going on here? Where the heck are we?"

Bailey automatically clutched onto the Pyromancer's shoulders. "Are we in the castle in the Sunken City?" with an irritated look, Mason shook her hands off.

Looking back at Wolf, Erica asked, "You don't think that Possessed Lord brought us here?" though that was mainly for anyone to answer.

"Keep it down," Amp snapped at them. "No, you're not at the Sunken City. The Possessed Lord did not find you. And…" he stopped the last sentence. After a corner and a flight of stairs, they came across a room with the door already opened. He pulled everyone inside and quickly yet quietly closed the door.

The room they were in appeared to be a library, the two chandeliers lit the room. There were a couple of tables with some chairs surrounding them, each table had a candle holder in the center. Amp stood near the door, Grey next to one of the tables, Rachel leaned against the wall, Wolf stood near a bookshelf, the others sat in a chair.

Amp walked in front of the group. "I can tell you where you guys are, though I can't really say what's going on because…I'm afraid I don't quite know myself."

"Alright, then," Mason leaned back in his chair as he folded his arms. "Tell us what you know."

It was silent for a good minute or so, the two goblins glancing at one another. Finally, Amp said, "You're no longer in the Spiral, my friends." Shocked gazes formed on everyone else's faces…except for Grey and Rachel who already knew.

"Where are we?" Mason demanded. "If we're not in the Spiral, where the heckhound are we, eh?"

"In a magical place the Great Fairy herself created. A realm quite similar to the Spiral, yet different. A world called _Gardenia_."

"What the…?" For a moment, Mason lost the ability to speak. No one as able to speak during that moment.

Grey suddenly snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah! An' a war's goin on back in yer world."

Instantly Rachel's mouth dropped to the floor. "A _what_?!" she nearly screamed. Again, Amp hushed her. She wasn't sure whether or not she heard him correctly. It was impossible. Everything was fine before they went to the park this morning and met that _thing_ that… No. _Nothing_ was from the beginning. Not ever since they were inside the Sunken City. After that, nothing was good, and this was by far the worst thing that happened today.

Wolf shook his head. "_Unbelievable_."

The female Diviner lightly pressed her lips together while she squeezed one of her hands in the other. "Well, as long as the headmaster and everyone else is there: we have nothing to worry about, right?" The other wizards only shook their heads in disbelief, still taking in what they've just learned.

"Yes," Amp spoke up. "You should all have faith in your friends, I'm sure they're doing everything they can to not let our foes from here take over. Sadly, I might have the idea that the Nervadans are taking part in this." Silence filed the air once again.

"Who's Nervadan?" Bailey asked.

"These really awful people that live in the desert far to the west. But that's a different story, which there's no time for."

_Right, Amber._ The Necromancer pushed herself from the wall. "Should we get going, before another surprise happens?" The last thing they need will be to find out that their lost friend is dead.

With a nod, Amp walked over to the door. "To the throne room. Let us hurry, but quietly as we go along."

* * *

_Any moment now. They will strike at any second._ The elderly wizard paced back and forth in front of his desk. He wasn't absolutely sure why he was so nervous, he truly had faith in everyone here, he was certain they would overcome the threat of the takeover. Perhaps, it's only because the twelve wizards have yet returned. True, it's the afternoon now, he had sent them out earlier this morning. Maybe it was his fear of the fact he may have lost twelve wizards already.

Or, if they're still out there somewhere, if things should fail, they would be Wizard City's last hope. That is, unless they're already dead…

Immediately he shook that thought out of his head. No, it couldn't be. It wasn't possible. He hated to think them all dead, more importantly he shouldn't believe in that. And he'll try his best not to. In fact to his luck, they could just be simply captured, and the Resistance are still out there, free, searching for them.

He was alone in his office. And he had finally managed to take a seat and calmed himself for a few seconds or so. Because after those few seconds, Mr. Lincoln rushed into the room, looking a little ill.

"They're here," he said urgently. "They're outside right now." Ambrose felt his heart leap, but remained calm when he got up and made his way to the next room, onto the balcony.

Instantly a gust of wind went past them once he opened the door. Rain came down hard, thunder boomed, lightning flashed. And there was something bluish that was forming in the sky. It looked like some kind of portal.

Suddenly, a voice boomed. "This is it, my men! This is the moment we've all been desperately waiting for!" It was coming from the sky, from that portal! "Our enemies will not put up much of a fight, so this will end quickly! Come,

Nervadans, cloaked, and armored! Let us take what now belongs to us!" To Ambrose's horror; a bunch of different men on horses appeared out of the portal in thousands. Some were cloaked(_probably the spies_), some in heavy armor, and the rest were dressed in a certain way, like they were from some kind of desert place.

"_By Bartleby_," the army was very massive, approximately more than ten million troops. Or a couple hundred million less than a trillion… But, the amount matters less. It all really depends on if they could fight. They are facing Ravenwood too, after all.

And then, the last guy that came out was all in dark clothing, with blue hair and a blue cape. He wielded a very large sword, which he pointed towards the sky as he descended from the sky. His eyes were bloodshot, his pale lips curved in an ugly smile, especially when his eyes laid on the headmaster. The man pointed his sword toward the balcony of the manor, and for a brief second the sky went really dark and electricity charged at the tip of his sword. Then it released a thunderbolt, and it was aimed directly at Ambrose. Though his aim with the sword wasn't spot on, so the bolt missed and struck the balcony instead. The house shook violently, and the headmaster and the registrar were both sent to the floor.

Even though he missed, the man still laughed wickedly. "See? This city is merely full of weak wizards. This should be a piece of cake!" he laughed again, vigorously. "Onward, for the glory of our Lord! For the glory of the Nervada king! For the glory of Nervada!" Suddenly, it was silent when he finally reached the ground. After a few seconds, the sound of an explosion went off. "ATTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!" As the horde slip up completely, earth shaking thunder roared across the skies of the city as the brilliant flash of lightning filled the skies. Ambrose soon got up, he peered downward towards the ground, the man was looking back at him with an evil smirk before he whipped the reigns of his horse and rode down the street.

…

His wicked smile broadened, everything was going to plan so far. They were going to take over sooner than he'd ever thought. And the storm was a perfect touch; the thunder will declare his rule, while the lightning proclaimed his power. Already he witnessed a couple of his men killing off the soldiers, the cloaked men were outstanding. Although it seems that most of their opponents happened to be magic users. He visited a different area, where it seemed like everyone he saw there were magic users. A lot of the people here were kids too, a lot of them on mounts, which some were attacking also. Oh how he _despised_ kids. He turned his horse around and rode back into the area he was in before.

Some men were already after him, and he used his large, thick heavy sword to go through them. With his sword he slashed about three of his opponents in half, the two remaining men were in armor. So one of them, which looked like a fox, he pierced through the armor with the now bloody sword, he pushed it all the way through the body. After a minute he quickly withdrew the sword from the body and glanced at the other armored enemy, who was human. With a mere swing, the head fell from the body and fell on the pavement with a splat, while the body landed on the ground with a soft thud. He was somewhat astonished, will the invasion really be that quick? That easy?

…

Gamma stayed in the room in which he always stayed in, though the large diagram of the spiral was shut off, only for the battle. He kept himself calm as much as he could, as thunder boomed outside and the lightning brightening the room during each flash. Sounds of explosion going of almost each second and a bunch of yelling going on, it was a great mess.

He jerked as he looked over to a nearby window, it sounded it was moving. But when he looked, it was still. He hooted lightly- perhaps nervously- as he slightly inched away as much as he could. Deciding to look at something else, he glanced at a collection of books, maybe there's a good book over there to read…

CRASH!

Instantly the owl jumped, almost off his stick. He shook while he looked at the window one again. It was broken open…

Then, he saw a hand reach inside and upward on a latch. It turned the latch, then pushed the window upward, opening it. The owl froze as he watched a cloaked figure pull themselves inside the room. He stood as still as he could and prayed that this person wouldn't see him.

Unfortunately, the person turned completely in his direction. They even pulled out a black sack that looked big enough to put Gamma in.

They faced each other for what seemed like hours, even though it was for a few minutes. Finally, the figure spoke. "You're coming with me, bird." And he leaped at the owl… The figure did sound like a boy.

Gamma hooted, and flew away from an attempted swipe of the bag. He flew over the bag the boy held over his head, and gripped it with his talons. The boy froze in shock, and the owl quickly tossed the bag out the window. Afterwards, he felt a pair of hands grab his feet. He hooted and flapped his wings wildly, the boy muttered a few swears when Gamma began swinging his feet. Finally he managed to get the boy to release him and the boy flew across the room and landed behind a desk. Some books from a bookshelf that was right there landed on top of him.

The owl had no intentions in hurting anyone, of course, though he felt it necessary to defend himself. So he shot at the figure, and used his claws to scratch at his attacker on the ground. The boy yelled and kicked as he swatted at the owl. And Gamma knocked the hoody off the male's head, whether or not he meant to.

By knocking the hoody off revealed messy silver hair and a pale face. Gamma took a closer look, the boy had a slight muscular build, even under his black cloak, he wore nothing but black. The owl stared into his purple eyes, looking at them felt like daggers were being stabbed into the cores of his eyes. His eyes widened while the boy took a moment to rub his face.

He stood on the desk. "Why, you look awfully familiar." he blinked a few times studying him as he tilted his head. Even when he spoke the boy hadn't looked at him. "By Bartleby… Weren't you a student here in Ravenwood once?" Quite funny, one of their many opponents looked like they were a student here, at least once before. Quite a while ago. He looked like one of the Necromancers that always gave Life students a hard time. What was his name?

The boy sat there and rubbed his forehead, looking both in pain and angry. Finally, it rolled off of Gamma's tongue. "Seth." he breathed. "That is you, isn't it?" It must have been, for the boy finally glanced at him, only with a glare. The owl jumped a little in alert, other than that he didn't move.

"Hoo hoo! Well, we must inform the headmaster at once!" he paused. "Or, that may not be such a good idea after all. Maybe there's a place to keep you in?" He yelped when everything suddenly went black. He moved his wings and feet, in every possible direction, but felt something leathery blocking them every time.

The owl squirmed and flapped his wings as much as he could. He cried for help, which only caused his kidnapper to shake the bag, a new one he pulled out.

"God, bird, don't you ever shut up?" Seth, the spy, held the bag down on the table as he tried to fasten it shut. Gamma resisted as much as he could, which caused Seth to suck his teeth and snap, "Sit still!" Finally, he managed to tie the bag up securely, though that didn't stop the owl from trying to fight his way out.

Suddenly the double doors busted open, out came the man with blue hair in dark armor. "We've successfully captured that old wizard. Wizard City is officially ours now; so get the bird and let's get out of here."

Merle Ambrose and Mr. Lincoln were in the background, two men that had them both by the arm. The elderly wizard began shouting. "I will certainly _not_ let Wizard City fall into your foul clutches, _Vinegar_!" It appeared to be the blue-haired man's name.

The man only fanned a hand at him, ignoring him. "Let's move now, Seth. King Baghdaar awaits. We need a place to put these prisoners in until our three new empires are successfully built and ready to be in use."

With a nod, the spy picked up the bag and fully turned to him. "Yes, Captain Vinegar." He ignored the owl's muffled mention on how funny the name was. Vinegar turned around and went out the other way, motioning his men to follow.

Ambrose continued to shout. "This is an outrage! You cannot come into a foreign world and simply-"

They were already outside, and the commander of the attackers cut him off when he shouted. "We have succeeded in our invasion. I have kidnapped this land's ruler, so the battle is now over, and Wizard City is now ours!"

The headmaster continued to argue. "No! I won't allow it!"

"You're captured," one of the men said. "Nothing you can do about it."

Gamma continued to tussle with the bag. "Let me out! It's too dark!" Seth jerked the bag again.

"Vinegar, don't you dare." Ambrose stated sharply. "You don't even know how the ways of the Spiral work…"

The man turned back and snapped, "Shut up! I came for what I want, and I got it!" Everything and everyone fell silent upon watching them. Vinegar just straightened his clothes and mounted his horse he parked at the gates. "Let us go back and tell the king that we were successful."

* * *

The journey to the throne room from the library didn't take too long. All it took was another flight of stairs and another hallway. Eventually they were in front of large red double doors with golden knobs. The two goblins nodded before each took one side of the door and push. As soon as the door completely opened, a creature shot past them and collided into the wall, slowly sinking to the floor, unconscious.

Shocked and surprised gazes switched from that being to inside the room. Three other creatures were having a standoff, two against one. Two of them looked just like the other one, they looked to be demons of some sort. But not the one with the icy blue hair that stood by itself…

That figure immediately turned in their direction. It was Amber, though there was a major change about her. Her clothes had changed! Her top was a breastplate, it was completely made of crystal, luckily it wasn't see-through. It was a solid blue color instead of clear like ice. She had on pants, they looked snowy. A chain with icicles hanging down from it was wrapped around her waist, indicating a belt. And then, crystal boots, the same color as her top. The accessories she had on were very similar to what she wore for fortunetelling: a silver crown, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, all made of crystal. She never looked so _different_.

It was the cold- very icy- expression she had on her face that was enough to send shivers down their backs, as if the look was intended to do that. Bailey barely managed to speak, her voice was barely audible. "A-Amber…?"


	6. With Chaotic Measures

**A/N: I apologize for the long delay. I don't normally do this, but it is only right and fair, because you have been so patient as I have been slow. I thank those who have read this far and had been waiting for a long while, and I hope this makes up for it. If it doesn't, I hope the attempt of the next chapter is more successful. **

**Also, I apologize for the sudden change of the title. I'm trying to improve my work and all, but a little push wouldn't hurt either.**

* * *

6- With Chaotic Measures

"_Amber,"_

Rachel, for a brief moment, froze under Amber's uncharacteristic expression. The Thaumaturge's icy glare watched her in silence, waiting patiently.

The Necromancer goes to say her name again, which only received a brusque, "_What_?" Her detached tone stunned her for brief moments.

"Amber!" Tears began to run down the cheeks of a terrified female Pyromancer. "Amber, please!" she tried to reach for her, though Mason prevented any progress. The cold gaze of the Ice wizard flicked to her, before merely dismissing her.

She started off in a slow pace towards them. Rachel started towards her as well, in which Amber responded by drawing an ice dirk, a dagger with a blade that is frozen, yet sharp. The footsteps of the Necromancer stopped as dark orchid eyes watched the blade approach closer and closer.

The Thaumaturge began circling her with the dirk to her neck once they met. The Necromancer remained still. She looked so calm on the outside, and wouldn't allow her worry show otherwise. Amber was now behind her; her left arm still holding the dagger to her neck at the front, while she leaned closer to her ear in the back.

"I don't understand, why do you look so frightened?" with a mock sadness she added, "I thought you would of loved my little _upgrade_." freezing air seeped from her frosty lips, sneaking outside with her words. Rachel could of shaken her head, had it not been for the threatening dagger at her throat. She hoped the ability to speak was somewhere with her before her throat is slit. When Rachel still hadn't replied, Amber simply stated "Pity." as the knife remained in its place.

Even when Amber finally touched her throat with the frozen blade, the Necromancer stood perfectly still, allowing the cold substance to lightly scrape at her throat. As uncomfortable as it felt, she used all her will power not to move or even flinch. And she felt a smile behind her as this happened…

The Thaumaturge's light chuckle was shy of audio. "Wow, Rachel, who would think you were ever this submissive?" she began to rub the blade's edge against her neck slightly faster, and rougher. Then a little more roughly a moment or so afterwards. "How much more fun would you allow me to have with you?" By the time the knife was removed from her throat, tiny scratches were visible on the Necromancer's neck.

Wordless, Rachel stood with her back still towards her, her posture a little more relaxed since the dagger moved from her throat, only now it stayed slightly above her abdomen. Arm still around the other wizard, Amber finally glanced back at the others who had blood completely drained from their faces. Bailey's crying ended as she silently watched the two with her tear-stained face. She caught Wolf attempting a step towards them, the male Diviner jolted when he met her gaze.

"I suppose you want a turn?" Amber's free hand gripped tightly on Rachel's right arm. The hand with the knife began to rise. "You attempt something, and she will get it." She spotted the wand in Wolf's hand, the knife once again rested against the Necromancer's throat. In a threatening tone she hissed, "Do it."

Wolf raised his wand, a sad expression swept across his face. "Do not push this so far. Please, Amber…" Suddenly she felt the Necromancer forced her arm away from her, and Wolf wasted no time casting the Ice Shield on her. The cold wizard glanced at both of them with shock gazes before she quickly fixed them death glares.

Rachel snatched a sword from one of the demons that looked surprisingly at her before making an attack. She chopped the demon in half easily with one swing. The other monster with his sword attacked, and Rachel parried it. Right afterwards Amber leaped at her, Rachel repelled her attack as well.

Amber chanted the spell of Amplify under her breath, which would make her attacks stronger for a while. Rachel whispered the spell of Conviction, to prevent any stun attempts or critical blows her opponent could make. The Necromancer took a couple of steps back while the Thaumaturge followed carefully. She jumped at her again, the Death wizard quickly sidestepped as she flew past her. That was when the demon jumped back in the battle and swung its sword horizontally. Barely dodging that attack in time, Rachel placed both hands on the sword and thrust it forward. This time her attack was deflected by the monster, and countered. Rachel blocked with another swing of her own.

Next she felt cold and sharp steel bite into the upper area of her right arm, ripping the sleeve of her clothing. She turned to face Amber again, who plunged her sword forward. She blocked in time, though lost balance due to the forcefulness of the blow. Not giving her a chance to recover, the Ice wizard made a vertical swing, Rachel almost lost her sword because of that. She felt another sharp blow, but across the middle her back. Quickly she turned to swing at the demon, although it ducked. Amber's swift foot made contact with Rachel's right leg, making her trip and fall on the floor, dropping her sword.

With his own sword ready, Wolf joined the battle. He dashed past Amber with a forceful swing of his own. She blocked, though stumbled back from impact. The male Diviner engaged in combat with the demon, which twirled its sword as it shot into him. He repelled it and sidestepped out of a two-handed blow it attempted. Before it could recuperate the Diviner went for the kill; forcefully he swung vertically, hard enough to knock the sword out of the monster's grasp. Straightway his sword dug deep into its chest, and the demon made a hellish cry before Wolf withdrew his sword from the demon as it buckled its knees and fell with a small thud.

Rachel pulled herself up and pointed her sword at the Thaumaturge, Wolf had gotten into a stance next to her. Although Amber had an amused expression on her face, looking as if she was about to laugh. In which she did released a small chuckle. "Huh, well, I see how things are then." The couple cocked a brow, watching her taking a step back. She sneered. "Y'know, I don't have to destroy you with this poor thing." Her dirk vanished, and she began floating in the air.

Quickly the air around them became freezing, feeling as if they stood in a closed walk-in freezer. The floor tiles and the walls were glazed with ice. Giant icicles and snowballs floated around her as the palms of her hands faced upward. A hazy blue substance surrounded her, and her purplish lips curved into an ugly smile.

She laughed. A laugh that wasn't her's- it couldn't be her's. It sounded too wicked, too maniacal.

Icy blue eyes scanned the room, and landed on the two goblins by the door. She pointed at them, instantly they jumped. "No doubt you will be in the way. May as well be rid of you." waving her hands, Amber collected all the snowballs that circled around her and collided them into a jumbo snowball. Then, as if she was rolling a bowling ball, the snowball rolled across the room at in incredible speed. The other three wizards couldn't get out of the way in time, so it rolled over them. Amp and Grey were pinned against the wall with everything, except for their heads, covered in snow.

"STIKE!" Amber laughed again.

Growling, Mason jumped to his feet. "You little…"

In a mocking sadness, Amber frowned. "Oh boo-hoo. Are you angry with me?" she smirked and threw one of her icicles at him. "_Too bad_!"

It shot through the air like a dart. Mason quickly ducked, and the icicle landed just above the two goblins.

Amber laughed as Amp glared at the Pyromancer. "That's right, boy, help her kill us!"

Erica and Bailey got up. "It's time you calm yourself, woman!" the Diviner shouted.

The Thaumaturge frowned. "Aw, come on. I am only having a little fun…" With the movement of her fingers, she lifted the three wizards and tossed them into the other two.

"See?" she snickered. She raised both hands in the air. All the icicles that surrounded her floated over the pile of wizards before landing, encircling them.

As she laughed manically, the female Diviner stood again, this time glaring at the Thaumaturge. "What's with her? It's like she went nuts."

Growling, Mason looked up at the attacker with clenched fists. "She's enjoying herself a little too much… That's what." Rachel noticed the knuckles of the Pyromancer's fists slightly glowing bright red.

Mason-literally-jumped to his feet. When he snarled, tiny flames spewed from his mouth, as if it indicated his breath. Amber watched with an amused grin while the Pyromancer's expression tightened, before he stomped his foot in a fit of anger. He exhaled through his nose, tiny flames discharged from the nostrils. His whole fist began to glow red as he walked up to an icicle in front of him. Muscles tensed, before making contact with the icicle, and shattering it into pieces. Bigger flames shot forward from his blow.

With the same hand he slammed his fist into the floor, which melted the ice in that spot and encircled the five with fire, with the icicles turning into puddles. The fire remained even when he shot upwards and floated in midair. Everyone except Amber was stunned. The male Pyromancer crossed his arms in a X style. Sharply he pulled them apart, as he did his hair was a fiery color and had set on fire, his hat burned out completely by this. A reddish-orange light surrounded him, indicating how hot the air is around him. In both of his hands were medium-sized fireballs, ready to melt through the coldest and hardest of ice.

The Thaumaturge's face turned blue as she inhaled. Color slowly returned to her face as she blew ridiculously freezing breath, so cold that it would be able to freeze even the hottest of flames. The Pyromancer put both of his hands together, the flames formed into an even larger one as they shot from the palms of his hands. The power and strength of both elements were equal…that is until Amber spoke a charm in her mind. Whatever charm it was it benefited her cold breath, making it stronger and thicker, and advance to the other wizard making the flames fizzle out.

He caught this in time as he saw the freezing substance getting closer and closer to him. Time was starting to run short…so he began speaking a charm of his own. The words came out in a prayer. He couldn't tell what exact words he spoke, but he spoke them so fluently, as if the words popped into his brain and slipped out of his mouth like so. The incantation was spoken in some kind of language, a language that sounded very distant and ancient.

This had caught Amber off guard. The chilly breath came to a stop and the huge flame had no trouble reaching her. She was set on fire, before she started descending to the floor. Mason followed as he floated downward to land, in front of the fiery figure that was Amber.

After staring for a long time at his work, he started looking at his hands that were lightly engulfed by flames. By now his hair was no longer in flames, but still the bright red-orange color. He looked back at his friends, his expression mixed with horror and amazement.

"Did you see that?" the sentence was barely audible when he spoke it. His opened mouth tried to form a slight smile, and his words came out even louder. "Did you _see_ that?!" His excitement overcame all of his previous feelings. "That _rocked_! Really! I was all like… _Wow_!" Although no one else had anything to say, they could only stare at the burning Thaumaturge.

The goblins at the other side of the room glanced at him, and each other, repeatedly. "Is she still alive, lad?" Grey asked. "An' maybe you can use them flames o' yours t' free us?"

"That…won't be necessary…"

Suddenly tiny flames dispersed, causing each wizard to duck. They heard Grey scream, "It's the girl, lad, the girl!"

Sure enough, Amber was kneeling on the floor flame-free, her arms spread apart with her head dropped. She stood up and pushed her hair away from her face. She looked damp with sweat, some hair that were out of place stuck to her forehead. Slowly she rose, a deadly expression attached to her pale and watery face.

"I guess I'll have to take care of you too." She shot at him. Mason took a step back and waited for the attack. But she froze, right there in front of him.

Assuming that she might not do anything, Mason relaxed. He started to speak. "Look, Amber-" A swift fist made contact with his cheek, stopping his sentence. Another landed on the other, before the next strike came as an uppercut. Stumbling back, he didn't recover in time for a kick in the gut.

The Pyromancer slid on his back towards the wall, Amber charged. Once he stood, another uppercut landed on his chin, the force was strong enough to lift him off the ground. She jumped as he flew. A kick slammed his body back on the surface before her feet landed her gracefully. Mason sat up against the wall with difficulty. Another one of her strong, quick jabs to the stomach nearly knocked the wind out of him.

"Amazing, isn't she?" that unrecognizable voice robbed her attention from Amber to its source behind her. Rachel yelped when she saw a larger demon, with its blood red eyes and brownish-yellowish teeth exposed from its grin. She wanted to shout one of her most powerful spells, but shock had taken control and paralyzed her completely.

The demon's loud and maniacal laugh echoed throughout the room, causing all eyes to fall on him. "My girl, you look surprised."

"Who the helephant are you?!" Bailey exclaimed, just as startled.

Amber's emotionless mien quickly became one of irritation. "And what do you want? Can't you see that I'm handling things?"

It chuckled mischievously, its grin containing its amusement as its arm folded over its bare chest. "My Crystalline… You are the most amazing thing I have ever laid eyes on. You are the most interesting being I have ever seen. How was I ever lucky enough to find someone such as you?"

"You didn't." she snapped, with her voice dripping so much venom. "It was that other creep with the cloak. _He_ brought me to you…" her words became dark. "And when I find him; I will remove his head, heart, and skin, leaving his corpse as nothing but a skeleton missing its head. I will feed all of that to the storm sharks as the remaining bones will be fed to the heckhounds… And _don't_ call me 'Crystalline'."

_Oh how I wish this was just a dream…_ Amp attempted a smile, in which instead came out deformed. "Well, hello Master Darcon. We are-ah-having some issues with Miss Amber."

"Mmm-hmm…" the demon made his way towards the half-frozen goblins, his tail swept across the floor behind his steps.

He wasn't exactly in his slave's face, but close enough that made Amp somewhat uncomfortable. "And what about the rest of them? Why are _they_ out here too?"

Shrugging, Amp's words were laced with a casual note. "They've escaped, using their magic."

"We couldn't stop 'em, they were out uv control!" Grey joined in. "They were threatin' us to let 'em go, or else they would 'ave turned us into flippin' frogs! Can't go trustin' a wizard these days. They're boat loads o' trouble!" Unable to find words to release, Rachel was in the middle of talking herself down from releasing a Skeletal Dragon on those unfaithful slime balls.

"You _let_ us go- you had a key for Bartleby's sake!" Erica spat heatedly.

"Nuh-uh!" Grey argued. "I had a toothpick that broke and a needle, no key."

"And _why_ did your toothpick break?" Not giving the goblin a chance to speak, Darcon continued. "We can make arrangements for you in the dungeon, junk head." Grey's jaw dropped, but no sound came from his opened mouth.

Amp's words began to substitute for Grey. "It wasn't his fault or idea to-"

"You're fired too." those three magical words froze his words and sealed his mouth shut. Guilt shook the Necromancer's body, the responsibility of their dismissal nipped at her heartstrings.

The demon's darkened expression lightened as it switched to the heavily frowning Thaumaturge. "You, my girl, are hired!"

"And I'll have you know, I work for no one but myself." her words were icy once again, as her face stated her growing anger. The female Pyromancer goes to say her name, but Amber didn't give her a chance when she curtly stated "It's Crystal."

When he laughed again, it wasn't dripping with wildness like the previous. "The one and only crystal that cannot be broken, eh?" His laughter ended with a brief "Well then." With his long and narrow tail swaying behind him, one of his sharp nails relieved an itch underneath his chin. "What will I have to do to make you _my_ crystal? Hmm?"

Amber smirked, concealing her silent chuckle. "Sorry to burst your bubble, silly demon, but this crystal belongs to no pair of hands. It has a mind of its own and works its own magic. It can do much without a bearer." the pair of crystal blue eyes rolled at the blank expression given by the demon. "I work for myself. Not for you, or anyone." She turned and headed to where a thin sheet of ice covered the doorway to a balcony. Turning her head to face the group, a ready fist made contact with the halfhearted ice layer that instantly allowed cracks to travel all over. She pushed through, and pieces of ice fell to the floor.

Darcon persisted as he followed her out onto the balcony. "You can't just leave. You were supposed to become my slave!"

"I don't do slavery." for a moment, he stood and watched her as his words had been lost. She still walked a calm and steady pace, even after the heavy huffing and puffing behind her and the charging footsteps. She was already off the balcony a second before the demon's arms met at his chest as he came to a stop at the railing. He looked downward at the bottom to meet with her mocking smile, before her head faced forward and her feet carried her off with a run. With two open palms she froze a spot of the rode, and began skating once she had landed on that spot. The trail of ice extended as she skated further away, the ice behind already melting away.

She was gone.

Bailey's hands buried her face with her sobs drowned in between. The demon's hands clutched at the railing as his body shook frantically. Rachel moved closer to Mason and Wolf, whispering "We're leaving. Now." and they began inching towards the door. Erica followed as she dragged the depressed Bailey with her. The sound of doors slamming shut in the room echoed after a large gust of wind shot past them. No longer concerning the demon, the necromancer ran to the large double doors and threw her shoulder against it, then nursed it immediately afterwards.

"Don't bother." the large demon's volume was low, danger wrapped within. "None of you will be leaving any time soon."

"Ha! Nice try." Mason extended his right hand in front of him. "You're about to become one crispy little demon." it closed into a fist as he reeled it back. "_Heeyaa_!" But nothing happened when his fist pumped forward. The male pyromancer tried again. But the same results occurred. He even tried stomping his feet. No flames expelled from anywhere.

Snickering, the demon watched him. Mason opened his mouth wide, exhaled through his nose, even striking the ground with one fist, in which he shook the pain off afterwards. "I don't get it… I just don't…" The loud laughter brought his attention from his hands to the demon before them.

"How sad…that you'll never find your way out of here. Why, of course. There aren't any rooms connected to this room, and you'll have to get through me if you plan to take the balcony." Smacking his gums and shaking his head, his arms folded over his chest. "How will our little wizards zap their way out of this situation?" Unable to come up with any better ideas, Rachel could only settle on one solution only…

There will be one less demon around these parts.

* * *

The stench in the castle dungeon was already more than enough to bear. But nothing was better than the rats and spiders there to keep you company.

Chains and shackles were already adjusted just right for Merle Ambrose's thin wrists, with Mr. Lincoln by his side. Gamma was hung in a large cage, where he had a roommate of his own- a yellow and red snake close to his size. Vinegar treated each with his smug smirk, standing there with his hands folded behind him as his men put on the finishing touches to the chains.

"Oh… I just cannot believe that this is happening, of all things." Ambrose muttered into his beard.

"Believe it." Vinegar replied. "Wizard City is officially mine, and soon will the rest of the Spiral."

"That will _never_ happen." the headmaster argued. "You may have captured the city alright, but none of the other worlds will fall into your foul hands."

"Mm-hmm." The men had finished and stood by their commander. "The king will be very happy to see you. But lucky for you, he has already retired for the evening. So get good rest, and you'll be seeing him in the morning after breakfast." He strode over to Mr. Lincoln. "Ah, Big Bird. We were thinking of transferring you to one of our newest dungeons back in your world… But turns out that we will be keeping you here. After all, Nervadans _love_ their birds roasted and seasoned." Turning to Gamma he added "That goes for your mini-me over here, too."

"Outrageous." Ambrose turned his head away from him, with is eyes fixed on a rat sitting in a corner. "Do not get your hopes so high, young man. We may have lost some students already, but there are still some that had escaped safely. They will do all they can to stop your schemes." He lifted his gaze, and pierced it into the commander's. "And then you can consider yourself done for once they find their way here. You _and_ your king."

Vinegar stared at him for a while, before nodding and stating "How nice." in a low tone. "The king would have loved hearing that."

"I'm sure he would have."

The commander frowned, but said nothing more. He turned and walked out the door, with his men following before the door closed. The only thing they had for light were two torches, one on each side of the room.

Releasing a heavy sigh, Mr. Lincoln shook his head. "I can't sleep like this."

Ambrose shot him a look. "There are more important things to worry about than sleeping."

"It's all out of our hands now. Look at us." Mr. Lincoln's gaze switched to the owl inching away from the sleeping snake. "We have done all that we could. The only thing we can do now is hope." he looked deep into the headmaster's eyes. "Hope for our student's wellbeing. And hope for a rescue."

The elderly wizard shook his head. "Not many are in wellbeing. Some have been captured."

"And others have escaped. Remember that."

"It's like he's watching me…" Gamma said aloud, but more to himself. His companions had ignored him anyway, Merle Ambrose deep into thought with Mr. Lincoln watching him, as if expecting a reply.

And Ambrose couldn't think of one.

He already knew there was nothing to do but hope and believe, but that doesn't mean there isn't anything to worry about. Wizard City is gone, Krokotopia and Dragonspyre could be next. As for the students and aiding warriors captured in the war; they could be enslaved, imprisoned, or worst, killed off. With those things in mind, he would be unable to receive any rest at all. And he couldn't figure out why Mr. Lincoln could seem so relaxed with all of this going on.

It seemed so absurd.

He released a heavy sigh. "You don't seem to understand what's really going here, Mr. Lincoln. This is serious."

"Trust me, I know." he didn't-quite-sound offended, but his frown was visible in the light given by the torches on the wall. "I am very much aware of the situation as you are, headmaster. I am, too, scared and worried for everyone else just as much. But again, look at us. We are in the same situation. We could get killed off tomorrow, Gamma and I especially."

"But we can't just sit here and do nothing, either." he was able to counter this time. Indeed, Mr. Lincoln did have a point, but so did he. "We have to plan some kind of escape, or something. I don't know if the air has a magic neutralizing concentration, but that is something we will find out shortly." Now it was Mr. Lincoln who couldn't make his own counterattack.

But he did accept his defeat. "It certainly doesn't hurt to try."

A smile hidden somewhere underneath his snowy beard, which glowed in the semidarkness. "Certainly not." His staff had been taken from him, but that small fact didn't stop him from attempting a spell. Yet, something else did…

He flinched when he felt teeth sinking into his right hand. He shook it, and tried again. Closing both hands and eyes and relaxing his body completely, allowing energy to flow through his limbs and muscles. His eyes and hands reopened, but no results were made.

A heavy sigh broke free, along with a bitter "Of course…" Mr. Lincoln nodded as he let his head drop. Gamma lightly hooted before expelling a yawn and began to relax his body, his intuition keeping him in alert of the snake a foot and a half away. Ambrose glanced at his still feet, then at his bitten hand in which he couldn't see a bite mark from where he viewed.

A small squeak from a nearby corner grabbed his attention. A grey rat curled up in the corner, staring back at him with its black beady eyes. He whispered "Tonight, we are roommates." with a small smile forming at the end. "Sweet dreams, young soul." The rat met up with sleep a minute after.

* * *

Thirty minutes after eleven had already passed. Most of his troops retired for the night. They slept inside the palace, for they were the only troop that had made it back. Algardo was still in Krokotopia, their conquer has yet been completed, while nothing was heard from Forlorn. Vinegar was going to see the Lord by himself tonight, with his two apprentices.

He knew he will be back before morning to meet with the king, but not even King Baghdaar himself knew of his secret sessions with the Possessed Lord. He hoped for that little piece information to remain clandestine from everyone, more so each and every Nervadan in the entire desert. If the Nervadans find out, the king especially, he would consider his plans destroyed. The whole thing stayed between him, Seth, and his other apprentice…

To the guards at the front he said "I am staying at my castle tonight, and will return by morning." before glancing at his two young companions. Thinking of nothing else but sleep, the guards allowed them through the door. Taking their horses from the stables they went outside the gates. The moonlight caught in the sand from the chilly, desert nighttime sky. To him it didn't feel terribly cold, with his armor protecting him from such climate. Although a cloak was over it, the hood covering his head. His apprentices wore cloaks too, same color, with the hoods on.

"We go to see the Possessed Lord, to tell him of our progress." he spoke lowly, as he stared into the horizon. "It will take a few hours tops to reach there, but we will be back in time to greet the king early. Let's move, now." He tapped the horse's sides with the heel of his boots, and the horse took off in a steady pace before running ahead.

Even with the hood on, Seth's smirk was visible in the moonlight. "Ready to see the lord, Blue Hair?" he asked the other apprentice.

His frown was hidden within the shadow of his hood. "It's Azul." his low and tired voice carried a thick Spanish accent.

The necromancer faced forward with a cheeky "Whatever." and followed Vinegar into the night, with Azul following behind.

…

It has been two hours since their depart from Nervada, riding north for that amount of time. The soil became dried and dead, where the skies were all dark due to the grey clouds covering it completely. A dead tree found here and there and three paths were to be found straight ahead. Who knows where the left and right paths lead to, but the path in the middle lead to a castle at the very top of the hill.

This was the Melancholies Region. The castle is called Melancholia, and this was one of the most darkest areas in all of Gardenia.

The castle itself was more like a ruin, but a place favored by the monsters here. This was considered a no-man's-land, many human's stay away from this dangerous area. If such is not done, that person would surely meet their doom.

Midnight passed an hour and thirty-eight minutes ago, sleep was becoming a desperate wish. Although Seth and Azul knew better than to ask for rest, Vinegar would not grant such as that, especially on something as important as a visit with the Lord.

Although there was no door, there were two pink and fat demons with sharp and silvery pitchforks standing at the entrance inside. Fallen pillars and cracked walls adorned most of the dungeon, along with thorns that had grown inside on the walls. A mural of the Possessed Lord, some demon, and a huge bird in different parts of the ruins. Statues of powerful-looking creatures stood in one room, with only two on the ten-foot platforms. And then a few flights of stairs leading down to the last floor where large stone doors stood before them with two statues of a wraith standing beside.

The room would have been pitch-black if it weren't for the crystal ball giving off a vivid red glow. Single-filed Vinegar lead them to the crystal ball with his gloved hands folded in front of his chest. "My Lord, I have returned with most satisfying updates."

"_I have seen your work, Vinegar…_" the very low voice dripped with much rasp. "_Now if only those other two fools succeed in their operations…_" A pause halted the sentence, as a bony hand hovered over the crystal ball. "_Imagine the power, gentlemen. Imagine what power we could harvest…_"

"Way ahead of ya." Seth muttered underneath a smirk, a smirk that wasn't his norm. Even Vinegar seemed to be lost in a world of his own at that moment. Azul only stared at the crystal ball blankly.

"_But of course, it won't happen right away…_" the voice continued. "_We still have steps to make, steps to follow… In which we shall wait for the others to finish…_"

This made Vinegar's eyebrows knit together. But still he said, "But of course, that would be rather rash of us to rush into things. Waiting is our best move." Seth frowned, but had said nothing.

The shadow-cloaked Possessed Lord spoke once again. "_Why don't we see how things are going on their end…?_" With a wave of the skeleton-like hand, an image of an area of Krokotopia was shown. Sand-dusted hallways tinted a reddish-orange was the background, with blood and corpses in various places. Some of the dead bodies are either missing their heads or a limbs. Some were dry, and others were a bloody wreck.

"The Pyramid of the Sun…" Azul breathed, watching as the adversaries kill each other brutally. Commands were constantly being shouted, as frequent as the sounds of explosions and agony-wrapped screams.

The blue-haired apprentice no longer could watch as he torn his eyes away from the gory scene. The Possessed Lord had switched the location to Dragonspyre, where the events there couldn't have been worse than in Krokotopia.

"Oh man… This is like watching a movie!" screaming and sounds of gushing blood made Azul shiver, especially after hearing Seth's next sentence. "That dude is like a geyser!"

* * *

She rolled across the room and into the large door. The beating she took drained most of her energy, which she didn't have to pull herself up. Rachel was on the floor, facedown, with her silvery curtains covering the sides of her face. The demon was quick- quick and powerful for such a crazed soul. Mason came sliding into her side, clothes torn and hat missing.

Laughing hysterically with one of the jean legs ripped up to the knee, the demon's hands circled repeatedly to charge up another fire ball, when a large tail of a leviathan knocked him against the wall to his left. Erica smirked, with purple hair all out of place and a missing sleeve torn off her arm. Bailey, with her broken nails used many heals on everyone, Rachel and Mason most of all. Wolf's sword had broken, but he didn't bother to use a wand. All of his spells were casted by hand.

Darcon's jeans were tattered in most locations and burnt at the edges. His stubbed, black belt was coming loose. He wore no shoes, but it bothered him none. A silver hoop appeared from a circular wind current around his wrist. A hoop that was a blade, a blade with jagged edges. He held it over his head with his hands holding it from the inside.

With it he charged, and spun like a cyclone when he was in range of the three. No one had a shield to defend against the attack, dodging was difficult. Steel slit though the flesh of the male diviner, deep into the shoulder. Blood leaked from the fresh cut, and Wolf was slowly falling towards the floor. He watched the round weapon being thrown at the pyromancer like a Frisbee, which was acted as a tornado when it circled around her again and again, faster and faster. She was tossed at his side when it was finished, a cut up blonde shaking and wincing.

Rachel and Mason's faint consciousness remained with them as they pulled themselves up with copious effort. The goblins still hung on the wall, Amp looking ready to faint and Grey singing and praying to all the gods of Gardenia.

"Why…? Why…?" was all could passed Amp's lips. "Why in all of Gardenia…? Dear Gauria…why…?"

"Oh _shut up_!" Mason snapped with his frail voice, after expelling blood from a cough. "You helped cause this."

Grey snorted. "Yea wright…"

"And you, my own _dog_ is smarter than you…" he had difficulty making his voice hint his anger. "If only we weren't dealing with that lunatic, and if I had the strength, you both would have been smoked."

"_Whatever_." Amp snapped back. "You have something else to worry about, Darcon will kill you and your friends." After a heavy sigh, he quickly added "Get rid of this snow, and we'll get you all out of here."

"Ha! Yeah right! How do we know you're not gonna run off? You've already shown unfaithfulness."

"Yes- yes, but at least you all will be out of here _alive_."

Supporting herself against the wall, Rachel stated, "Fine. But if you deceive us again, may the banshees come to haunt and torment you, a place in heck will be waiting for you." her voice was no better than Mason's. In any case, the venom in her voice was miscarried.

Bailey sat at the feet of the male diviner as he and his sister readied another spell. The demon, with his weapon held high above his head, took small and steady steps towards the group of three. Rachel watched them as Mason summoned a Sunbird in front of the goblins. Even though it wasn't for any harm, they flinched and looked away when fire spewed from its beak and into the hard and chilly snow. As all dissolved into water, the goblin pair landed into the puddle of water beneath.

Amp did as much to dry off his cloak, but Grey decided to let the huge wet stain in the front to dry out on its own. Greenish-grey hands searched all over the blue wasteland for a pocket, and pulled out a folded sheet of paper once they found the only coven. Quickly he unfolded the paper into larger proportions until all of the terrestrial was visible.

"This is the world map of Gardenia." a finger rested on the small drawing of a castle. According to the landscape keys on the map, this castle rests on a small hill surrounded by a forest. "Our current location is Daracian Castle. Inside the castle is a waterway, which will take us down stream and into a town miles southwest from here- Colebrook." Amp's index finger traced down the stream and onto the small picture of a few houses. "We will be safe there."

"But 'corse, we wun' be there till sometime late in the mornin'." Grey spoke up. "By foot it'd take longer, but it'll be faster goin' downstream. We'll 'ave a current carryin' us most of the way."

"That, my friends, is what shall happen." quickly he put the map away, in the same position it was before. "But it's on the first floor, towards the back. So…I would start running as fast as my feet can possibly carry me."

"But what about…" her sentence faded away from the pain and fatigue, her gaze on the others who dealt with the demon.

"Darcon'll follow." Grey assured. "And if yer friends are smart, they'd be followin' too." Both goblins took one side of the double doors and pulled it open. The small creaks of the doors easily bought Darcon's attention as he stopped with a sharp turn.

"Run! Quickly!" they took off through the doors and took a left, Mason and Rachel followed.

They came to a staircase that lead to the foyer. The goblins slid down the railing like a slide, and continued running right after. Small glances were exchanged by the two wizards, before they took two at a time going down. They were halfway down by the time Darcon caught up. Although Rachel had slipped on one of the steps, she knocked him down and they both came tumbling down the stairs. Darcon watched for a second, before sliding down the railing on his feet after.

Finally their bumpy ride came to a stop as they laid tangled on the dirt-brushed tiles. They quickly got up and ran right, in which they believe the goblins went. Determined and angry footsteps of the demon echoed through the sconce lit hall, and no sign of Amp or Grey was left behind. It was uncertain if the others were following behind, but going back wasn't an option.

"In here!" Rachel felt much better upon hearing Amp's voice. They hastened to follow before the goblin slammed the door behind them.

Dim lighting from two small chandeliers saved this room from complete darkness. The floor was made of rough stone, barrels and crates piled against the wall, faint sounds of a rivulet came behind a rusty iron railing that only went as far as halfway across the room.

At the end of the room was Grey with two rafts and four paddles, the rafts were already in the water and tied to the railing. He danced and jumped, as if his bladder was fighting desperately to hold the forceful urine.

She found Amp's panicking gaze stuck on her. "Where are your other companions?! Weren't they following you?!"

"Gauria Almighty!" Grey shouted. "Screw 'em! Darcon's hot n' our tails! They cn' go through the balcony or somfin'. Let's go an' get out while we can!"

"_No_! Screw _you_." Rachel snapped. "I don't care. I'll go back for them, even if it's a risk!"

"Then it was nice knowin' ya! I ain't stayin' 'ere!" he kept one oar in one hand as he threw down the others with the other hand. "C'mon Amp, we're out o' 'ere!" A loud and abrupt bang from the wooden door bounced against their eardrums, each jumped and stared at the door. Hellish screaming and frequent punches and kicks were being heard from the other side.

Mason tensed up with a spell readying within his wand. "I'll set his crazy ass on fire."

The necromancer gave him a grave look. "I want you to stay here, Mason. I will teleport to them, and port back to you with them…" she took a quick glance at the goblin in grey. "Stop him if he tries to leave." Suddenly, high pitched screaming was heard through the door before the banging ended.

"That sounds like Bailey." Mason stated, as all pairs of eyes were glued on the door.

"Teleport, guys!" Rachel called. "Hurry!" Anxiety consumed most of her composure as she was reaching to the point of screaming and rushing out there with them, especially when shouting was heard from Darcon and…what sounded like Erica. Irritation was building up from them arguing with the demon instead of teleporting to where they were.

Finally, a spell was yelled out from Wolf, followed by screaming from Darcon. Seconds of silence went by the same time hearts increased their beats. Everything froze as soon as the doorknob turned with a click.

"Hello? Guys?" The sound of Erica's low voice eased all souls from their pain of fretfulness. Yet a small fireball shot past her, and came close to striking her. Widened eyes narrowed as they flicked from the wall to the male pyromancer. "What the freak, guy?! You have some beef with me, or what?"

He shrugged. "I panicked. I missed anyway, so you're okay."

"Well you wouldn't like it if I almost striked you with a bolt, yeah?" she snapped. "_Thinking_ is the key, guy."

"Okay, so you may 'ave put Darcon t' sleep for now. How's 'bout you use that thinkin' key an' get into the boats? I say that's one 'ell uv a way t' use that good key." Grey hopped onto the first boat. "Four on each boat. Amp, you monitor that back one, I'm up 'ere."

Amp sighed, but shook it off as he walked to the second raft. "Let's do this quickly, who is going where?"

"First boat." Mason wasted no time jumping into the first boat, followed by Bailey.

"I want you to stay with me." Wolf told Erica, who frowned as soon as the sentence was made.

"Why do you act like I can't handle myself? I'll be fine. Besides, you and Rachel can have all the alone time you want." the last sentence came out like an ambush, completely taking him off guard. The male diviner was left with nothing to say, with no counterattack, as he stood there stunned, temperature heating his cheeks. Even a shy rosy shade colored Rachel's cheeks as Erica promptly made her way to the first boat.

"My, such words for a young lady…" the memory of the demon pushed all of Amp's mere thoughts to the side as he grabbed the remaining two oars and hopped onto the raft. "Hurry, you two! One of you untie the rope. Grey, undo yours." Grey hastened to do that while Rachel untied thier's after they both boarded. Grey's boat was already going downstream by the time Rachel was finished.

…

It was a silent ride out of Daracian, as they became exposed to the air of the night. The moonlight reflected off the water they float on, the moon and her many starry companions. The ride became more soothing, relaxation stayed by them now.

On the first boat, Grey was fast asleep, and Mason dozed off after sitting in such a comfortable position for quite some time. Drowsy eyes of the female pyromancer and diviner stared into the lake. As for group two, no one slept. Sleep was at their door, but there weren't-quite-any eagerness to answer. The only thing that stood between them and that door was a force field of caution.

Amp's sore eyes glanced at the sky, the river, and Rachel for a while. Wolf's head rested on her shoulder, as her head was tilted back, face aimed at the sky. Her eyes stared blankly at the stars and the moon. The goblin fidgeted a bit, before crawling beside the necromancer. She hadn't acknowledged, even as he sat there and stare at her. For a human, she was an attractive young thing, regardless of her minor injuries clearly visible from this position.

He finally decided to remove his eyes from her, and stare into the wood of the boat. "So, it all comes down to this, eh?"

Her eyes did not leave the sky, although her shrug showed she heard and noticed him. "Everything happened too fast. The war, Amber, this whole journey period."

"Journey?"

"Well, yeah," for a moment, she took her eyes from the sky, serious and saddened purple eyes pierced into his sympathetic yellow orbs. "We're not leaving Amber, _I_ won't leave her. She is most important as of right now, and I really don't want this Possessed Freak getting to her. If anyone will be reaching her ahead of time, that person- those people _will_ be us. That Possessed Lord will have to kill us to take Amber away from us."

Amp stared at her gravely, before releasing a heavy sigh and looking away, rocking back and forth with his hands clutching his feet. "I am sorry to say, but he may of already have. Well, I mean, there is _no_ way she could do all of that by herself. It seems totally inhuman."

"And what about Mason? How was he able to do what he did then? That seemed just as impossible."

"Well, I can tell you what I think for now and explain more later. He wasn't himself either, is all I can tell you for now. There's much more to it, but now is just not the time to explain. In Colebrook I will tell you all, now it is time to sleep."

"I can't. I'm worried… And maybe scared."

"Amber will be fine, let's just worry about our own safety for now. We may be open to attacks, although the town isn't far. We shall be there by morning, or late at dawn."

"Okay, look, I am not comprehending what it is we have to hide from."

"Darcon, your friend, monsters…"

"Hide? From Amber?"

"You're not in any condition to face her, or anything. We are taking you to the nearest town to have you healthy again, and prepare you for your challenge up ahead."

A challenge? Unless he speaks of Amber and the Possessed Lord, what other challenge is there?

He was able to catch her puzzling guise, so he nodded with patience. "Allow me to clarify. You see… you remember how all of this had started, right? Think all the way back to the beginning, where everything was normal until the first odd thing occurred." That wasn't difficult at all.

The memory of that night in the Sunken City flooded into her mind like water from a pitcher being poured into a glass. The ghosts, the lantern, and the mist were the first things that came to mind. Next that came was the recollection of pain she had felt, what had happened to her and Amber. And finally, when Amber had mentioned the presence of the Possessed Lord himself. Whatever had happened afterwards remained in dark fog.

For the past few minutes she swam within the sea of that memory. Illness surfacing as she continued onto the next day, where they were all taken down by a single and bizarre individual, with one motion of his fingers. And all of a sudden, they ended up here, during a war at that. Who knows of what outcome appears at the end of it all, but for one thing that is certain, it will remain a mystery until the time is right to travel back again.

But something way in the back spoke above others, that the outcome, so far, is nowhere near great. The feeling danced so close to the heart.

"You start to look green." Amp had saved her from drowning in her ocean of thoughts. For now she turned away, and stared into the river. She felt his nod as he said "Everything before you had changed that very evening, and the day after is destined to reach the books of history." he gazed into the moon with a deep and calm breath. "During this entire event, heroism and responsibility is required to travel alongside you, even the qualities of friendship and loyalty. Above you lingers a long-lasting cloud, the question for your journey: do you have them? Do you have what you must offer? And do you have enough to give?"

It seemed like so much to take in, the rules of this game seem strict and critical. It seemed like a situation of do it and succeed, or die and fail.

And failure was nowhere related to an option.

The necromancer stared into the sky and simply stated, "I merely wait to put it all to use."

A smirk had formed on the goblin's face. "I suppose I take it that you accept. Then prepare yourself well, because it all begins _now_."


	7. The Land of Greens

7- The Land of Greens

"_Wake up! Wake up!"_

He felt his body shake violently, followed by loud screaming. "Awake slothful voyagers! You will be caught in a storm! Awake, I say! Awake!" Suddenly electrical energy surged through his behind, and the Sorcerer jumped awake with a yell.

He examined his capturers, one was a fox while the other was a boy. The boy wore elegant garments, as did his furry companion. His skin was tan and his hair was the color of chocolate. His red eyes carried some sort of sparkle in them, showing even a hint of pride. A leather strap crosses his torso to the sheath on his right side.

"What land do you hail from?" the boy asked. His speech processed a light Indian accent.

Staring at him, Patrick answered. "Avalon… Are we still in the Spiral?" looking around, he couldn't recognize the area he was in. He only saw trees around him that indicates them in the middle of an aisle. It felt like they were still in that area of trees, but they weren't. Here, it wasn't foggy, and much more brighter. Although the sky was still coated with white clouds, as if it thought about raining.

The grass seemed very healthy, as did the other plants around him. He remembered places like this, but these surroundings didn't match any of the places that came to mind. It even feels different than the regions of the Spiral… These people don't appear to be the same citizens.

It pointed out clearly when the boy asked "What is that?"

The Sorcerer gasped. That little area of trees…that was some kind of portal, wasn't it? "Oh no…" he got closer to the boy. "Where am I? How do I get out of here?"

He moved back. "Back away, foreigner. I do not want your strangeness to rub off." The boy's hand moved to the sword's hilt. "Stay back, or be skewed by sharp steel."

Instantly, the wizard backed away. "I mean no harm, I come in peace… An unplanned appearance I shall add."

"Terrorist or not, you are still a very suspicious stranger. Therefor I shall not grant you easy trust."

"That I understand, so I ask to introduce myself." When the boy nodded, he continued. "I am Patrick Wildspear," he look behind him at his feet, all of his companions were in sight. "I am the deputy of the Wizard Resistance." he pulled out his wand from his back pocket and showed it to the two strangers. "I study the arts of Balance, which entitles me as an Archmage Sorcerer."

The boy and the fox studied his wand, taking somewhat of an interest in it. "So you tell us that you are a wizard of this 'Balance', and you are from this world of the Spiral?" Patrick nodded. "Hm…"

The Sorcerer placed his wand away. "May I ask of your identity?"

"Sanjay Radni Arab Baghdaar III of Nervada. Although I tend to go by Ravi."

Patrick went through the names in his mind. "Judging by the very long name, you must be some type of-"

"Prince. Yes, I am. I am prince of the Ahranic Desert, where Nervada resides. A desert far to the west, where the most corrupt people in the land hail. Ruled by the most egocentric man all of Gardenia had ever laid eyes on."

"Your father?"

Ravi nodded. "King Baghdaar II. I disagreed with his ways and I wanted no part of it. So I had fled. My father had sent people to find me, so I hide here in the Florala Region."

"No disrespect or anything, but running away doesn't solve anything."

"I know, but I do search in hopes to find some way to change the ways of my people. Meanwhile, my father puts us to shame. And I will look bad because he is my father." after a moment, his eyes narrowed. "Why do I tell you this? This should not be of your concern."

The sorcerer chuckled, showing his pearly white teeth. "With all due respect, it was interesting information. I hadn't expect that to come out."

"Of course not. Such useless information does not need to be worn out."

"Oh, no," he giggled. "It wasn't useless… A little too much, but certainly not useless. If anything, I think it's wonderful." a friendly smile was made especially for the desert prince.

Although his hard frown hadn't soften one bit. His gaze switched to the ground. "Hmph. That is easy to say, especially when you are not a runaway do-nothing prince, with a selfish and greedy father." His tone became quickly cynical after he picked up his head to stare at the wizard. Reddish-brown eyes scanned him from head to toe. "Heh, and here I am, talking to a guy who claims he knows sorcery." Patrick's smile faded almost instantly.

This was all becoming so awkward too quickly.

The fox next to Ravi made a sound as if he were clearing his throat, which casted both pairs of eyes towards it. "Pardon me, kind gentleman, I am Ravi's associate Rikki Tavolt. I am very pleased to make your acquaintance." he bowed gracefully, with his bushy tail swaying behind his feet.

Pale brown lips twisted into a half smile. "Yes, Rikki has been my friend for quite some time. I would have not make it this far without his assistance. He is my one and only true friend." He draped an arm around his fox friend. "We are like brothers."

Hearing those words, the sorcerer's smile brightened. For a prince, he had an interesting life story. How he would love to get to know him. "That sounds a lot like me and Austin. And he's-" His sentence took an immediate halt upon seeing the Theurgist sitting there awake.

His hand on his forehead, resting above the sensation of pain. According to his eyes, he had yet to come to, in which awareness drifted into him as confused eyes wandered about his surroundings.

Patrick's smile greeted him. "Hey Austin. Glad you're awake… Are you feeling okay?"

The Theurgist's gaze flicked to his, which had transformed into a scowl. This took him aback as he waited for his reply. He felt better when he did. "Patrick, what's…?" He allowed his sentence to fall, especially when he spotted some new faces. "Who are they?"

"The storm is coming. Gather your friends and let's go!"

"Where?" the Theurgist questioned him and the fox's demand. At that time, the others awaked. Ravi's frown returned, thin arms folding over his chest.

Rikki tugged on Patrick's sleeve with a paw. "There's no time to lose, we must bring you to shelter. To the castle!" with that he took off, Patrick being dragged behind him. On his two hind legs, the fox was fast. The sorcerer was having the discomfort of constantly tripping over his feet.

The desert prince watched them run ahead, before watching the others behind him pull themselves together. His frown stated unfriendliness, expelling sharp and terse words. "You heard him. Onward to the castle."

"Um, no." Austin's hands rested firmly on his hips after brushing grass off his shoulders. "I want to know who you people are first."

"So I take it you want to get caught in the storm?" his voice dripped with heavy acid. "Of course, wise choice." he turned and ran after the others. The Theurgist stared after him, the intake of the sudden tartness was enough to stun him. Although it was all pushed aside for now, especially when the approaching thunder gave its first fair and calm warning.

…

By far, the thunder had been patient. Although the rain had not.

Impatient drops of water splashed on the grass, and on them, more and more frequently. Water traveled all the way through their clothing, as if they had came from swimming underwater in a lake. With soaked clothing sticking to their skins and unmerciful water seeping through each hair string, it seemed it was taking all of eternity to reach their destination.

The fast and furious fox still took the lead, with Patrick managing to keep up without the grip of his firm paw, and then Ravi who wasn't far behind. The others remained a stone's throw away.

The thunder itself began to grow impatient and made its first violent threat. A hazy figure of a large castle lied straight ahead through the fog. Storm clouds covered most of the sky, muddy grass reducing the friction between the ground and their shoes. The fox's eyes peering at the castle's tall figure, half hiding behind some trees.

"The castle is up ahead! Hurry!" Rikki had gotten on all fours before sprinting into the small group of trees. Patrick watched the fox disappear into the dark picture. He picked up his pace, but not by much, for it was the fastest his feet could carry him.

But somehow, Ravi caught up and they ran side by side.

"Use all of your leg muscles!" he told him. "Rikki ran further ahead, did he not?"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" the sorcerer snapped. "What is it you people want me to do, turn my boots into jets? Hmph, excuse me for not being able to run as quickly as you want me too."

He could of sworn he felt a pair of rolling red eyes dismissing him. "So you are as stupid as you look." He ran ahead, oblivious to Patrick's hard stare. Cerulean eyes took their turn of rolling before looking behind for the others.

…

Huffing and puffing he collapsed onto a tree. Once he had the energy, Patrick sat up and took off his hat, twisting it it as much as he could. He couldn't believe how much water was released as he did. Ravi, sitting on a boulder nearby, watched him until his eyes drifted elsewhere for interest. Rikki leaned against the tree and waited for the others.

The other five wizards did make their appearance by the third minute, all equally exhausted.

Rikki pushed away from the tree. "Please hold off any drying off until we get inside. Better yet, we will provide you all with new clothing, after we offer you baths."

"We appreciate everything you are doing. Thank you, Rikki." Austin, again, was the voice for the group.

"Are we ready? Just across the courtyard now." on all fours he zipped onto the castle grounds, with the prince hopping up and running after.

At the door was were two guards stood, one was a rabbit while the other was a frog. Rikki had reached them by the time lightning's light flashed in the sky gave its small warning. Ravi came seconds later.

"Let us in." the fox told the guards. "Let us in, we found seven kids near the forest, in the plains east of here. I believe they are lost and have nowhere else to go. I want to get them out of this weather before they get severely ill."

The two guards exchanged glances, before nodding. "Hurry, then." Swiftly, they opened the doors and stood to the side.

Rikki bowed in thanks as the Resistance group came up from behind. The fox studied each wizard: the females were hugging themselves, shivering. The Goth and the pouty white-haired were frowning, shifting on one leg to another as clueless and weary eyes danced all over their new surroundings. Patrick and the leader seemed neutral to all things. As for his partner/friend, Ravi looked irritated and impatient.

"Single-file, please." he ignored Cole and Wolf when they rolled their eyes and made small comments towards his request. The fox led them inside before the door was closed behind them, making their way through the candlelit foyer. A paw rested on the doorknob as a pair of eyes took a quick glance at the followers, turning the doorknob slowly with a click and a small creek.

It was a small and nice living room with a plush raspberry carpet, adorned with white floral designs. Ornate couches on each side of the coffee table, another with some chairs sat in front of the fireplace. Curtains did not cover the windows, heavily wet plants dripping water as raindrops splashed onto everything in sight. Another soft rumble rolled across the clouds, and inside the castle seemed much warmer than outside.

"Here you have it, young ones. Take off your coats and settle right in, make yourselves at home. Relax, and I shall return with the most grandest rose in all of Florala. You all wait here with Ravi." The fox walked out the room, leaving them alone with the desert prince with an open door.

Patrick was unsure whether or not to settle in. So far, they are staying until the storm passes, that could be hours from now. Adding baths and new clothing may be until the next day. What is their leader thinking? What will the owner of the castle say? That is, if Rikki isn't the owner himself.

He already noticed Wolf allowing himself to plop onto the couch, as wet as he is. They were all soaking wet. Cole and Ryan decided to rest as well, the Diviner sitting on the couch opposite of Wolf, and the Conjurer sitting in a chair by the fire place. Calamity sat in one of the two chairs behind a small and elegant round table. Only he, Austin and Haley remained standing.

Ravi was by the door, looking out of it, indifferent to everything inside the room. He is cold, Patrick thought, although he admit he wouldn't want to be stuck babysitting a bunch of random kids either. Without looking back at any of them, the prince said "I will be back." before walking out the room and into the foyer, starting a conversation with a _castle guard_.

He had never felt so uncomfortable with anyone within his entire lifetime.

At least they have time to talk amongst themselves until the kind fox returned. The Diviner and Necromancer already engaged into a conversation, smiling and laughing as they spoke. The Pyromancer made her way towards the Conjurer, and they talked. The male Theurgist had his arms folded over his chest, appearing to be deep into thought, while the other sat in the chair with her legs crossed, sighing and looking around. She looked so comfortable, even in the state she was in.

Even when just sitting there, she looked so adorable. Emerald eyes staring at nothing, delicate hands piled on top of her lap, her top foot swaying as if she had a song in mind. Looking at her wet and wavy hair, he wondered if it'll ever be dry again, this being the second time it was heavy with water.

This is his chance… He can get to know her better.

He went to join the female Theurgist and sat in the other chair. The other remained by himself, and he wanted to motion him to join them, But that didn't happen. Instead, he got into a position to fully face her, who seem to be lost in a daydream.

"Neat place, huh?"

Her gaze flicked to him, and dismissed him. "Yeah, cool." It was a good start, but what else could he say?

"They are so nice, bringing us to a place like this, out of the rain. I wonder how long we get to stay here?"

"Rikki is very nice." she said, and sighed. "But the other one seems like he has an attitude. He was very rude, especially to you and Austin. I don't think I like him too much."

"Yeah. But sometimes when you get to know someone, they really aren't like that. It takes time to warm up to a total stranger, you know. Besides, he has been through a lot…which is why he is the way he is."

"Oh," a barrier of silence grew between them as they each had looked in the opposite direction. What else is there to talk about? The war that's happening back at Wizard City? What to expect here in this new place? She was looking a little worried, perhaps of the war, and the thought of her parents' wellbeing. Perhaps he felt a little homesick too, it has been a while since he's seen his family back in Avalon. But there never seems to be time to travel so much, so much of his recent dreams of him and Austin living back home again…as little boys…

Although that was a good question: how _is_ everyone doing back there with the war? The faith in his heart says they are winning, but something at the back of the mind states something differ… But because it was so irrelevant to the situation at hand, he decided to push it all aside with the feeling of his heart. They _are_ winning. Everything _will_ be okay.

"So…back there in that weird forest, what was that?"

The sudden question snapped him out of his thoughts, his attention back on the Theurgist. "What?"

"What _was_ that? You know, that thing that happened back at the forest?"

He stared at her, blinking. His mind only drew blanks of what she was trying to describe. He couldn't think of a forest of any kind, or whatever _thing_ she was speaking of. "I don't know, I'm sorry."

"Oh." it traveled with a disappointed sigh. Inside her mind he heard the words: _I hoped you knew…and thought you may have felt it too…_ He felt as if he left his brain back in the Spiral, for he couldn't think of what this all could have meant.

Neither had he dared to ask.

* * *

_Kreeeeeennnnk…_

The sound of the dungeon door opening echoed throughout the dark and dingy halls. Ambrose had been awake throughout most of the night, his eyes hurt and his sore muscles had locked. Discomfort teamed up with his anxiety in keeping him wide awake. Determination in an escape remained with him, curiosity made him listen to the feint sounds of footprints against the rough and cold floors. Footprints that were too soft to be Vinegar's.

Shortly it came to a halt, a face appearing in front of the door's bared window. The person was cloaked, the face hidden within the shadow given from the hood. He peered at the person , and wondered if it was one of the dungeon guards. Or even worst, an executor.

Until, that is, he remembered they were supposed to see the king first- the one who will decide their fate.

He had dared asked, "What business do you have here?" instead of a serious tone of voice, weariness overrode all and corrupted his tone to be inappropriately soft for the matter at hand. The person stared silently at him, as if he hadn't released any words. The headmaster was ready to repeat his question, making sure the words would sound stern this time.

Although there wasn't the need. "I have come in peace. I am not here to do any harm." the voice sounded like a young guy. The words were soft and light, as if he was trying to keep at a whisper. Instead of a light Russian accent, there was a thick Spanish accent. This was someone completely new, he thought. He even had a small hope that this young gentleman was sent to rescue them, or at least one of the survivors of the war…

"Listen to me," he continued with his low voice. "This place is horribly corrupted, these people will do bad things to you. They are planning something big, especially the man that harasses you. Don't ask how I know, just take my word for it. Please." This person must be one of the spies, it was all too obvious. It was amazing, a spy willing to betray his own kind to help end this madness and fight for a better future.

"Oh…I already know that. But tell me, young man, what is it that you know?"

The pause felt too long. He noticed the young spy lowering his head, whether he thought how insane this all was or disbelief in how sudden it all happened… He expected at least something like that, instead of the answer he was given. "I can't tell you, I'm sorry. But you'll just have to believe me, if you all want to remain alive. You see it for yourselves, no? They are wicked people. And if anything, I'll help you escape, but you can't let anyone know that it was I who freed you. Yes?"

He spoke quickly towards the end, but Ambrose had followed. It was a mystery why he couldn't explain what was going on…unless he didn't know himself, or just didn't want to say for his own sake. Though what mattered most right now was escaping and refuging in a safer place. "So you say you have the key with you?"

"No," quick and quiet the word was. "This would be the worst time. Hang in there, and continue protecting each other." The sound of a door slamming open made him jump, along with the rushing group of footsteps. The spy muttered something in his language, then spoke quickly to the headmaster. "You _never_ saw me, okay?" He ran in the other direction, sounding more and more distant than the approaching people.

Vinegar was at the door this time, with three dungeon guards. The key was shoved into the lock, hurriedly twisting and jiggling, and rested in the hole while the door slammed against the wall. Widened wild eyes stared into widened startled eyes. Inhaling and exhaling was audible through the mouth, which seemed ready to release loud words. The men by his side held their spears tightly, in a stance that was ready to kill.

One of the commander's gloved hands clutched at his sword's hilt. "Who came in here?"

"No one. I'm afraid it is your imagination." Ambrose spoke coolly. Perhaps that was why they felt the need to barge in here in that manner. That, or the paranoia of them escaping.

"The door wasn't locked, you fool." Vinegar spat, releasing his sword. He had finally collected his breath when he spoke again. "Because of how this place is, sound waves will bounce off the walls. So surely you heard the door opening, did you not? Don't try hiding him, I want to know _who_ came in here."

The headmaster shook his head. "I _was_ asleep until you busted in here like that. This place supposedly has tight security, does it not? So you probably forgot to close the door on your way out last night."

"_No_." He became very angry, just about the only enjoyment he has in this place. "You can't fool me, you doddering idiot. I know what I'm talking about, so don't try to play stupid games with me just because you have nothing better to do than _rot_." Ambrose allowed a smile underneath his beard. This was terribly entertaining. He was right, though. Other than plotting a way out of this filth hole, there wasn't anything better to do. And according to his words about the king, it isn't like they can kill him yet.

An excuse was to just gain a better acquaintance of him. Indeed, seeing how many buttons he can press until he explodes was a good way of getting to know him better. It was an enlightening and fun way of doing so.

"The key was already in the lock." He spoke again, calmer at this rate. "I am utterly certain I locked the door… With this _same key_ in the door…" He held up a copper key, which was attached with two others. By Bartleby, that boy lied. He _did_ have a key.

Disgust replaced his amusement almost instantly.

Words no longer did the talking. Vinegar motioned for his men to release the prisoners. Mr. Lincoln awoke during the conversation, and Gamma when one guard picked him up and placed him inside a smaller cage. Ambrose and Mr.

Lincoln were attached to a sturdy rope, which was tied tightly around their waist. One guy stood aside while Vinegar walked out with another guard who pulled the prisoners by the rope. He came out after the other who carried the small cage with the owl in it.

Out of the dungeon they finally were, it already seemed as if they spent a long time down there. They were dragged through the halls of the palace, receiving the stares of some folks. The headmaster looked around for a young fellow in a black cloak. Unfortunately, he had no luck.

It hadn't seem like much of a long trip to the king's lair. Quite thin he was. With low stocks of food and a cruddy economy, no wonder this man is desperate for more land…another land. The large crown that sat on his head looked somewhat grimy, the king himself had the look of someone who is never satisfied with anything. He sat with his legs crossed and his hands resting on the arms of his throne. Dark hair and chocolate skin, it was a wonder how much he stands in the sun.

Vinegar bowed before him, and released his first words since their depart of the dungeon. "Kneel before King Baghdaar III." Even if they did refused to do so, they were yanked to the ground on their knees by the men. Only the owl was excused. The king nodded, his poster relaxed in his seat. The guards forces the prisoners to stand while Vinegar took three steps closer the throne, hands folded behind his back.

"Your Royal Majesty, a pleasure to see you as always."

Again, the king's curt nod stated agreement. "Likewise, Vinegar. I would reward you and your men with a wonderfully roasted large bird." he had made a hand gesture towards Mr. Lincoln when he said that, who had frowned when he caught the little motion in his direction. Ambrose wanted to protest against it, although was no longer needed when the king continued, "But…I suppose our alien friends have already been through enough for now. Let them rot for the time being until I figure out what to do with them. As of right now… I have other things to worry about."

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"Wonderful. Now, be gone." They were dismissed with a wave of a hand.

They took the same route to return, which made this trip seem shorter. Their meeting with the king wasn't anywhere near his expectations. It was too short, and the king looked as if he didn't want to be bothered. Anyone would think to have a long discussion when wanted a word with someone. The king _did_ wanted to speak with them, right?

Dinginess greeted them when they returned to the cells. Shackles once again hugged their wrists, while the little owl was placed back in his original cage. Vinegar nodded and exited with the other men. He stayed there with the door open, while the others left. "He had a lot more to say than that, you know. He may speak more later, but, whatever. So far you will rot here… Consider yourselves lucky." He closed and locked the door. Through the barred window he spoke again. "The guards will return with food for you. You will only be fed three times a day, so I suggest you eat well with each meal. Welcome to Nervada, miserable sods." The headmaster caught his ugly smile in time before he walked down the hall.

Gamma adjusted his glasses. "Well, I guess that's a good thing. If all they will have us do is sit here, then that gives us plenty of time to plan an escape."

"If there is a way," Mr. Lincoln replied. "They have us strapped up so well, how can we move?"

_There is this boy who said he can help._ Ambrose didn't bother speaking such words. Already the boy proved to be a liar, what point is there to get the others' hopes up in a rescue that may not even happen?

_No_. There _is_ a way. He will _not_ give up his hope or lose his faith…for the sake of the Spiral.

* * *

Silence filled the room.

The time from Rikki leaving to fetch some woman-he hoped that's who he referred to-to right now seemed like a long time. Patrick hadn't moved from his seat at all, next to Calamity who had dozed off not too long ago. Cole and Haley were having a staring contest with the flames within the fireplace. Austin finally allowed himself to find a seat, with Ryan and Wolf he stared into space. Ravi ended his conversation with the guards minutes ago, standing by the door with a blank expression.

When the desert prince glanced out the room for the hundredth time, the blankness in his face disappeared. "Finally. Did you make a pit stop in Orktusk too?" The comment sounded a little odd, the sorcerer thought. But mainly because he had no idea where this _Orktusk_ is. Though if he was using it like that, the place must be afar from here.

Rikki only smiled at the comment when he entered the room.

The wizards closest to the door turned their attention towards the fox. "Right then," all eyes fell on the vulpine. "Follow me, if you will. The Madam awaits your presence." out the room and up the staircase they followed the fox in a single-file.

White double doors lined with olive and adorned with floral designs greeted them after a few corners of the hallway. Rikki led them inside, into a room that was like an indoor garden. Flowers of various types and colors was the main reason for the beauty of the room, with the lush and neatly trimmed grass being most of the floor. A thin dirt path in the center divided the garden into two, which reached an olive green carpet that reached the top of the grassy hill were a single throne sat tall and mighty. It was made of wood, with green padding embedded into it.

On the throne itself was indeed a woman in an elegant and somewhat poofy dress. The bodice was the color of a flower's stem, the sleeves silky and translucent. The skirt was the color of a happy and haughty rose, with was a deep and rich shade of red. Auburn hair up in a bun, underneath a golden crown decked with leaves and vines, and tiny daisies. Her rosy complexion complemented her fair skin tone, with calm hazel eyes and shiny thin lips completed a wonderfully pleasant smile. Her posture was straight, with her hands folded in her lap. Between her hands was a mini sunflower. Patrick's guessed that it may be her wand.

How incredible that she seemed so patient all this time.

She eventually stood upon seeing them enter the room. The fox lead them through the little garden, one behind the other on the single dirt path, and at the bottom of the hill towards the throne. Rikki had bowed once he made it up the hill. "The magnificent and beautiful Madam Aroma." gently he took one of her hands and lightly kissed the back of it.

The lady laughed, obviously pleased. "Certainly, I am. Madam Aroma Aurora, absolute ruler of the Florala realm. Whatever are you young ones doing out here all by yourselves?"

"Well, Madam," there wasn't much of a logical way of explaining how they ended up here. There was only one way how Austin could think of responding to the question. "We were lost."

"Separated from your parents?"

"No, ma'am. Just…lost. We wandered too far from home."

An unsure and suspicious look formed on her face as she studied the male Theurgist. "I don't believe you're from here. Not just here in the kingdom, but all of Gardenia in general…" the leader glanced back at the deputy, who shared the same thoughts. Why in the entire Spiral would she think they would try to lie about their homelands?

He took a deep breath, and spoke coolly. "No, Madam, we aren't. We are from a different universe known as the Spiral. We are Wizards from the many different schools of magic within the entire Spiral."

"_Wizards_?" it was quite offensive the way how she said it. There wasn't a hint of skepticism within that word. It was well felt, like an explosion of a bomb.

Cerulean eyes narrowed, especially when the voice of the desert prince decide to murmur his own smart comment. "Heh, like I have never heard of that one before…"

"It's true." the male Theurgist insisted. "We _are_ wizards. See the hats? Our wands? Those really aren't for show, FYI." in his mind he glared at the snort made by the prince.

But Aroma herself looked intrigued. "If it is so true, why don't you prove it?"

Ravi chimed in. "Yes, I am sure those are not just some toys that you claim to have magical powers… I admit, they are adorable little tools you have there. Do you have to make little wand shot noises when you play with them?"

_Shut up._ Was what almost made it out of Patrick's mouth. Although with him being a prince, saying that would not look right, especially in front of the mistress of this part of the land. Austin looked as if he wanted to retort, but had smiled instead as he stepped away from the group. He took out his bow and arrow wand, surrounded by a hazy green aura and tiny blue sparkles. He made sure all eyes captured the details and features of his bow.

Even that received a comment. "Very pretty. Looks expensive…how much money did your mother pay for that?"

"I bought it." the Theurgist smiled, hoping it would shut him up.

How unfortunate it was to be wrong. "Seriously, kid. Should you not be more into girls by now? Use your allowances on something more _useful_… I am amazed at the fact that you have friends."

"Thank you." he withdrew from Ravi's rolling eyes to concentrate more on his spell. His eyes closed, his mind on one of his Life spells, inhaling deep into his lungs, exhaling out through his mouth. Concentrated energy becoming focused on his wand, a tune had placed itself in the mind, leaving as a hum. It was music to the ears, the sorcerer thought. He loved hearing Austin sing. He had a beautiful voice, which specially tugs at the heartstrings when his voice is within the soft notes.

A healthy and striking unicorn appeared from the tiny sparks, a garland encircled its neck while little daisies sat within the lush and wavy sky blue curtains. It nickered, looking happy and energetic with its sparkly blue eyes. The humming coming from the Theurgist stopped as he slowly approached the unicorn, his hand gently stroking the snout. The unicorn nuzzled the side of his neck, making him smile and chuckle.

Madam Aroma stood from her seat, examining the unicorn. "One of nature's most magnificent creatures that gives into its beauty… A majestic and magical creature the unicorn most certainly is." She began taking steady steps descending from where her throne stood. "Tell me, little one, how were you able to summon the unicorn?"

"Magic, Madam." he replied, grinning at his magical weapon.

She made it to the bottom and approached him. "No," a kind hand rested on his shoulder. "Don't. Just Aroma is fine with me, young man." she smiled. "And I shall call you…?"

"Austin, milady."

"Ah… I love that name…" she grabbed one of his hands in her own before covering it with the other. "Well then, Austin, it is a pleasure to meet you. You have made my day with your unicorn. Bless thee, and welcome to Florala!" the Theurgist blushed, smiling and looking elsewhere.

"Hello, Ms. Aroma, we're here too y'know." Wolf stated, jealousy clearly spotted within the sentence.

The woman laughed, sliding one of her hands across his back. "Of course darling, you are all very welcomed here. I don't know any of you, but I certainly don't mind you staying here until…um… Perhaps a little while if you so choose. Not very long, unfortunately."

"No. It's okay." the leader spoke. "We will leave once the storm is over, the least we want is to be any trouble for you."

She shook her head. "Look at yourselves, dear. You all need proper bathing, new clothing, rest…and when was your last meal?" Well, Patrick thought, he last remembered being somewhere around lunchtime. Right now it looked to be early in the morning.

Aroma made distance between her and the group. "You aren't going anywhere, I'm afraid. In fact, I believe it is now time for you all to take your baths." She raised her index fingers in front of her face, before dropping them to her sides. Each Wizard's clothes instantly dropped to the floor, their undergarments exposed to all others in the room. Some gasped while the others turned red, but all Wizards tried to cover themselves.

Anger stood out clear in Cole's sentence. "Is this funny to you?"

"I'm not trying to be funny, I'm only helping you."

The Conjurer glared. "Yeah, much obliged." the sentence was laced with heavy sarcasm, with anger still hinted within. Although, something else caught Patrick off guard, besides the weird spell. Ravi, the rude and sarcastic prince of the desert, wasn't pointing and laughing at their humiliation. Instead, ruby eyes were gawking at something else…or _someone_ else to be exact. He had expected that individual to be Ryan, Haley, or even Calamity, like a pig he could be. But to his surprise, it was Austin he stared at. His eyes were scanning the areas of his torso, down to his thighs.

And he seemed awfully interested in the waist area.

Perhaps he may of done the same if they were total strangers, whether in mild admire or pure jealousy. The Theurgist was a great looking guy in his opinion. Although he knew he most likely wouldn't be gaping at him so desirously like that, like a hungry and waiting Storm Shark. Absolutely not, regardless of how beautiful he may be.

"Ravi," Aroma's voice had snapped the prince out of his trance and Patrick out of his thoughts. Ravi shook everything off before folding his hands and looking at the mistress. "I need your assistance. If you will, please follow me to the library." he slightly nodded at the request. "Rikki, bring our guest to the bathing rooms to get washed up. Please and thank you." she walked by the group and started out the doors. The sorcerer caught Ravi stealing another glance at Austin, looking as if he was afraid he would miss something, before he left reluctantly to follow Aroma.

Rikki climbed down the steps and walked pass the group. "I hope the young ladies won't mind sharing one while the gentlemen share another. We don't have that many available, unfortunately."

In an orderly fashion they followed the fox out the room. Wolf, who was behind the sorcerer, walked closer behind him, whatever he wanted to say will reach his ears in a whisper. "Did you see that?"

* * *

Unbelievable. No way that this, of all things, can be happening. Was his agreement in joining the enemies all for nothing? He hated to think so.

The fact that Wizard City fell made Azul angry. What really took the cake was how quick and easy it came. And the Wizard back in the dungeon…did _he_ even do anything? The foolish old man is becoming too soft for his own good. As for Vinegar, he is a crazy fool. Already last night he came to the conclusion that the commander is not in it because he merely serves the Nervadan king. He is seeking for his own power, the late-night meeting with the Possessed Lord pointed that out dead on.

If anything, he couldn't care less about the king. If he was loyal to Baghdaar, Vinegar would have _nothing_ to do with the Possessed Lord. They would have never met. He wouldn't even be here right now.

He had passed Seth when he was walking though the living room. The Necromancer no longer wore his cloak, wearing the black clothing most spies wore underneath their cloaks. His muscles were more visible now without the cloak. He knew a pair of purple eyes eyed his as he walked by, but ignored them as he was exiting into the hallway.

"Why do you still have your robe on? Don't you think it's hot enough in here?" the blue-haired spy kept his eyes on his moving ambitious feet. Halfway through the hall, the voice followed him. "It's safe here, you know. You don't have to hide from anyone in here. Unless, of course, you're plotting something against Vinegar…" that had placed him in an immediate halt. With his clenched fists at his sides, he felt the other spy's smirk resting on him, yet no footsteps intended to move.

When Azul hadn't spoke, Seth's smile broadened. "So you are planning something already! Ha! I knew you would try to switch sides soon enough."

"Never mind, Seth." Azul kept his back towards him. Facing him would expose the truth. "Why don't you go back to being Vinegar's little pet, like the phony you are."

Seth laughed, leaning against the wall as his arms folded over his chest. "You're pathetic, you know that? If you didn't want to join us, then why _did_ you?"

"You're pretty dense, aren't you? This was only to save my friends. I've said that over a hundred times, no?"

"If that isn't the smell of rotten bologna, then I don't know what is. I already knew you were a turncoat, but I've never thought that someone like yourself would be so fickle. Pick a side, and _stick with it_."

The blue-haired spy's evil glare spoke for him at that point, in which the Necromancer's evil smile challenged his glare. The entire situation itself was becoming even more difficult and really annoying. His "partner" already knows the situation, as do Vinegar and the Possessed Lord. But they were cruel to him. They weren't making this any easier on him. Indeed he only agreed to save his friends from the possibilities of imprisonment, slavery, or even death. Easily they took advantage of him.

Using him as bait back at Wizard City was one way. But he has a plan of payback. All he had to do was release the Wizard and his companions from the dungeon. They would all flee together to search for survivors, form alliances with them or anyone enemies with Nervada… King Baghdaar and Commander Vinegar would both be screwed. He would need all the help he can get for the Possessed Lord himself. As for Seth, a future invitation of an one-on-one square off awaits him.

He will avenge those who suffered during the attack. For Krokotopia, Wizard City, Dragonspyre, and all the other victims.

A new savior of the Spiral will be born. The Nervadans, their king, and Vinegar have a special place in hell waiting for them.

He started to turn away. "Don't you have something to do, or somewhere to be?"

Seth shrugged. "Nah. They don't need me or anything. But, hey, you seem pretty busy yourself for someone who tries to hide himself from, like, _everything_."

"That is none of your business." Azul snapped as he whirled back around. "If you're looking for something to do, how about keeping your nose to yourself? Or something else you should really work on; like keeping your ego in check. No one cares about how great you _think_ you are-"

"And what does that mean?" he interrupted. "Look, guy, I don't _think_ about awesomeness, I already _know_ I have it."

"Ah, si, just like your attitude when you went to challenge the Possessed Lord, thinking you have the amazing ability of kicking anyone's ass all the way to Azteca."

The Necromancer scoffed. "Oh, what? Now you think you're better than me?" he bounced from the wall, purple eyes glaring into the even emotion of the azure eyes. "You know nothing about me, kid, so just shut your face and keep walking if-"

He cut him off. "You went over there and challenged the Possessed Lord that day, did you not? Look, little boy, look at the events back then and where we stand now. What were you thinking that could happen if you actually _had_ defeated the Possessed Lord? Recognition? Power?"

"I don't know! And what's it to you anyway?" Seth held a tight fist in front of his face. "Either you shut your mouth, or I'll do it for you."

"You fought him," Azul continued. "And you lost. Your ego led you there, and brought you here. So much for Mr. Awesome, huh?" he turned around, facing the opposite direction. "I mean, I would have believed it. That is, of course, if you _did_ beat him…" he turned back with a dark look. "But you _didn't_, did you?" but by the time he did turn back around, Seth was no longer hanging in the doorway. The thought of his childish response of walking away from his words made Azul shrug it off. He was wasting his time anyway.

Once again he turned his back and continued walking down the hall as he returned to his sea of thought. A sudden flying glass vase crashed into one of the pillars beside him, the colorful fragments freefalling onto the marble floor. He looked back at the thrower, who was none other than the heated Seth, and used one of the Necromancer's smug smirks as a taunt. "Nice try. Why not go to the practice arena and practice on your aiming?" The Necromancer spun around in a huff, and started to walk away.

"Remember, Seth, focus is the key. And if you're really good, you can be arrogant all you want. We do need more archers on the team, you know." Seth responded by holding his middle finger in the air as he disappeared. Azul chuckled, more than pleased with himself.

Although there isn't the time for fun and games. There are a lot of tasks he must carry out. To him, time was neutral. He was running out of time, yet there is time to wait for the right time for his big movement. The only thing about it is how to determine when will it be the right time. With Vinegar dragging him all over the place, it will be difficult to find the exact moment.

The fate of both worlds were in his hands. The weight of two worlds rested atop his shoulders.

* * *

Aroma sat on the carved stone bench holding a wilted daffodil in her hands. The petals were no longer lush and beautiful, they were dried up and dead-looking, threating to break if touched too much. A leaf had broken off of it, the stem an ugly brown color instead of a healthy and happy green. No more happiness was within the flower. It showed no more liveliness. No emotion, but the appearance of a dead flower.

Most of the other flowers were in the same process, each sick and miserable. They cried. They cry for something, whether it would be for sunlight, fresher soil, or a happy tune.

The mistress could give none.

She was equally depressed. They are ludicrously low of food, most of the crops already died the past few weeks. The people of her kingdom are dying of hunger; with no plants or fruits to eat, they are all turning to the farms that only give them…meat. What a horrid thing to eat. Wretched pork, blubbery beef, and then that dreadful chicken… How could they even _think_ about eating a harmless animal? She didn't care about the low supplies of edible greens, she will _not_ eat a living and innocent society of nature.

But while they stick to their religious beliefs about meats here at the castle, her people changed theirs because they aren't left with a choice. The farms selling their chickens and pigs, killing some of their own cows, it just sounded so inhumane.

And she will soon be without much of a choice.

Though there is a possibility that not even that will save them. The farmers will run out of food soon enough, and her people will start to die along with Florala's economy. It broke her heart seeing Florala ebb away slowly but surely. And the plants were dying slowly and painfully…

Ravi entered the garden of depressed flowers, a book held underneath his armpit. He looked frustrated. "I do not understand, what is making all the plants so sick?"

Madam Aroma let out a sigh, staring at the raindrops that landed on her rosy dress. "Whatever it is, there must be something going on in the soil."

The prince looked down at the greenish-brown grass, and dug his foot into the soil. He heard her gasp, but paid no mind to it as he examined the ground. The ground was smooth and soft, mud dripping off of his boot. "Hmm, maybe, I do not know. But I say the soil seems fine." she sobbed, her hands covering her face as she lightly shook. He could only watch, as they were showered by the heavy rain. Thunder's roar sounded wary within the grey clouds, lightning no longer followed, sleeping until the next storm.

She cried as he stood with his eyes closed, head dropped. Florala was going through a great depression, and all he was doing was hiding here, from his father. As much as he wanted to help, he hadn't a clue to why Florala's economy was dropping by the minute. Why are the plants so unhappy? They have read and thought of all the possible and suitable possibilities as to why the plants are dying so quickly.

What on earth is going on? Most of all, why is the Great Fairy allowing all of this to happen? He himself never believed in Her, but the Floralans are the most religious of them all. In spite of how pious they are, they will soon start to ask questions. Soon enough, their belief in the Great Fairy will be completely dissolved.

He didn't want to see such a race lose all of their faith in everything. In whatever way he can, he will help them gain all of their faith once again.

Finally she stopped, with a few tiny sniffles. Ravi waited for her to pull herself together, watching her slowly rise from her spot. He frowned. "Shall we go back inside, Madam Aroma? It will not do any good if Florala's ruler fell ill at such a time."

Aroma nodded and hooked arms with him. He led her to the door and opened it, allowing her to enter first. Once they were inside she said, "You are not a bad guy, Ravi. Just because your father may be a bad person, doesn't mean you will be too."

"I know that, madam. I am merely embarrassed by him."

She turned around to face him, her eyes red and face damp from her tears. "There is nothing to be embarrassed about, Ravi. If you want to make a better change for your land, or all of Gardenia, do so. But, of course, you must also have faith in yourself. If you are good and do good deeds for the society, the Great Fairy will certainly reward you."

Ravi frowned again. "But what about Florala? Do you not have faith in your own country?" for a long time she looked at him, he was staring back, waiting for an answer.

Again she sighed, and lightly rubbed his shoulder. "I'm afraid I only have little faith left within." she looked away, as if having a thought. "Although, I do have some people in mind. I'm not sure what they can do, though, but it doesn't hurt to try. _Anything_ for my kingdom…" the idea sounded mad to him. It didn't sound right, but what choice is there. If he was king of a dying nation, he would of done the same.

Besides, it would be interesting to see if they can prove how _useful_ they can be.


End file.
